Malorie Moon, 9 Days
by gaelle31
Summary: To everyone, Malorie is the perfect pure blood, faithful to her noble rank, and she hates the Malfoy son. Translation of French by Loonyfan.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: The beginning of hell.**

How can I be panicking this way, when I was so happy just an hour ago?

Of course a party to celebrate the end of You-Know-Who, that's something to be happy about! For once all the houses were having fun together without having rows… 

That was a real party, not one of those rubbish things where all that matters is to know who is going out with whom. No, this was a spontaneous party, and the usual Hogwarts conventions were left outside.

And all this happened thanks to our tragic national hero, let me introduce Harry Potter, who, yesterday night, destroyed You-Know-Who.

Right on the last day of our N.E.W.Ts! I don't know where he finds the energy to fight, he and the other mini-Phoenixes. 

At the same time yesterday, I was going through the exams I'd just had again, as if I needed more pressure than I already had… 

All things considered, it was a great night. But then she ruined everything, the damned headmistress.

Let me explain. Late in the night, McGo ran in, dishevelled, asking (or rather screaming) for silence. She explained to us that among the Death Eaters, we had allies. 

Surprise! Everybody thought it was the opposite. Anyway, we had allies. Bad luck, one of them, Snape, died fighting. Probably thanks to one of the mini-Phoenixes (I wouldn't be surprised if it were Potter or Longbottom).

There was another ally, and this one is alive. And, as half of the Death Eaters haven't been caught yet, they would just love to start dissecting his entrails… this precious ally was going to hide here, at Hogwarts.

So far, no problem, a Death Eater at Hogwarts, that's easy, after all, it's not as if it were the first time.

All of a sudden, the great hall doors burst open, I turned to have a better look, everyone else did the same, and there, inside me, I heard a deafening scream.

Who was there, breathing my air? Draco Malfoy! Directly from Malfoy manor, he walked proudly through the crowd of students, who stepped aside.

I thought at least I didn't have to worry, since all the school was going to despise him as much as I do now. Except that this blasted slashed performing animal seemed to have decided to go against my plans.

He came near him, and, as everyone else at that point, I was quite sure that Potter would strike him in the face, and that we would be the lucky audience of an epic fight, live from the great hall… But no, they shook hands.

And it didn't stop there, all the mini-Phoenixes had their turn. The girls got a hand kissing, even Hermione Granger, who is muggleborn. It was most certainly reluctantly, judging by the forced smile on both their faces, but it was still a hand kissing.

After that memorable scene, all the other Slytherins approached their hero to greet him. They wouldn't applaud the mini-Phoenixes, but for a home-made Slytherin, they could obviously do something…

And there came McGo, yelling one last time to state that the brave spy would stay at Hogwarts until the end of the school year, that is to say, nine days.

Nine days!

Why am I so upset about him being at Hogwarts?

Let me explain: he hates me, but that's not a bad thing, since I hate him too. We're both Slytherins and yet, we hate each other. We keep insulting each other, and, from time to time, we have a good fight, while our fellow Slytherins have a laugh looking at us.

In our first years at Hogwarts, we didn't really know each other. As a true Slytherin, I even used to laugh with the others when he made some crack about the Gryffindors. Then, during our fourth year, he started to tease me, and, as a true Slytherin, I teased him back, but it got worse and worse until the day this moron turned out to be a Death Eater. 

I spent a very quiet seventh year at Hogwarts, I even went out with Blaise Zabini, a very cute boy, but with the huge malformation: he has a vacuum cleaner instead of a mouth, and it's never fed enough…

Despite that, he is still the one who dumped me. Saying that I was always depressed, that I wasn't as I used to be, and that I wasn't in love with him… Of course I wasn't, but try and find a Slytherin who is neither repulsive nor obsessed by those Pure-Blood ideas.

Oh yes, I forgot to inform you about this tiny detail, I'm half-blood. My mother is a very noble witch and my father was a muggle. My mother, not wanting her whole family to slaughter her, never told anybody who he was, except me.

My family is very deeply ingrained with Pure-Blood ideas. If they learned the truth, they would treat me like an outcast.

So I never told anybody the truth about my blood. Especially not to the other Slytherins, I can only guess how much more mockery from our new hero I would have had to live with. The fact that he believes me to be a real pure-blood forces him to respect my family a minimum. 

I really thought I'd got rid of him. But he is back for nine days, so I have nine days to hurl my sarcastic remarks at him, to insult him, and to cast spells and curses on him…To show him how much I hate him, how much I detest him, how much I despise him… Let's hope that he won't realize that I love him.

--

Oh yes, another tiny detail, I'm madly in love with my Draco, but of course, nobody has any idea of this. After all, it's common knowledge that we hate each other.

I fell in love with him during our fourth year, when we started fighting.

--

Why did he have to come back? Nine days!

Ok, the other Death Eaters want him dead, I understand, the ministry wants to protect him, I still understand, but why at Hogwarts? Why here? 

Here… To make me suffer martyrdom… For nine whole days, I will have to hide my feelings from him.

And after those nine days, I won't ever see him again.

Why on earth is there a deadline? It makes things even more complicated!

When one day he suddenly disappeared, I was depressed and desperate, I was on the verge of committing suicide… But I had no choice to make about that! Now it's different…

--

Oh no! I can here the giggles which always precede my two roommates. 

Careful, impact in five… four… three… two… one…

BANG!

Those are Millicent's graceful manners…

The girls look at me and stop giggling.

- 'Already in bed?' Pansy asks.

Yeah, I'm used to sleeping with my clothes, you know…

- 'No', I'm only resting.

- 'You left the party early', states Millicent.

- 'Yes, I was a little tired.'

In fact I didn't want to bump into Draco without being well prepared.

- 'Did you drink much?' Pansy asks, rather hysterically.

Of course! Haven't you seen? I danced on the tables and snogged old Flitwick.

- 'A little', I answer.

- 'It's so great Draco came back', Pansy giggles.

- 'You're going to have nine days to get your claws into him', Millicent says.

And there they are back on what looks like a giggle challenge.

Just another detail: Pansy Parkinson, rich and pure-blood, is an official applicant for the job of Draco Malfoy's wife. She's been practising since our very first year.

Her parents made it clear to her that Draco Malfoy was the best match she could find.

I assume Millicent would like to catch Draco too, but she avoids showing it. Good for her, because despite her pure blood, she doesn't stand a chance.

- 'The Draco's hunt is open!' Pansy bursts out.

And there they go, giggling like mad hens once again.

That's a Draco's hunt with a goose release!

--

I'd better change, they might get to bed quicker.

- 'Oh my god', Pansy moans, 'what am I going to wear tomorrow?'

Your uniform, you stupid nit.

- 'You should wear this skirt', suggests Millicent, offering her a piece of cloth.

- 'Wait, I fixed another one last week, I think it will look better.'

Fixed? Are you kidding me? …you must mean cut short, like all your other Hogwarts uniform skirts. The more months and years pass, the shorter Pansy's skirts get… One could wonder why she is going to the trouble of doing it: most of the time we wear long witch robes and those cannot be cut short!

--

I'm in bed at last. The girls, on the other hand, just started a fashion show with Pansy as top model. How can she have that many clothes?

- 'Hey girls, it's late now, the sun is starting to rise', I state at last.

- 'McGo said we don't have lessons tomorrow', Millicent tells, 'so don't worry about that.'

Didn't you understand me? The sun is rising, and that's when we are supposed to sleep, like every other student in that school.

- 'I'm sorry girls, but I'm really exhausted now…' 

- 'You're right', says Pansy, 'and besides, I'd rather avoid having a tired face tomorrow.'

That would be a shame!

- 'Now I think of it…' Millicent bursts out.

You, thinking! Is that possible?

- 'You didn't see Draco tonight, you left before, didn't you?' 

Oops, careful, alarm lights turned on.

- 'No, and I didn't complain about it.'

- 'Maybe now you'll completely stop fighting with each other', says Millicent with a rather unconvinced little smile.

Considering the speed my heart gathers when I saw him in the great hall, I would be quite surprised.

- 'I don't think so.'

Unless he holds me in his arms, to tell me that I'm his only true love, that he is mad about me, that he wants to marry me… Malorie Malfoy, my god, that sounds nice…

- 'Malorie!' Pansy says.

What? Oh, I hope I wasn't gazing in mid-air with a stupid look on my face while thinking. Let's hope they didn't notice anything!

- 'Please don't mess him up too much', Pansy says, looking worried

Phew.

- 'Can't promise', I answer, laughing.

- 'At least, the common room will be as fun as it used to be, and since there are fewer lessons, we might have a Malorie Moon Versus Draco Malfoy fight every night', says Millicent, going to bed.

I hope not, if only you knew what I feel during those fights you find so amusing.

--

Alleluia! Pansy turned off the light, but I don't thing it's going to help me to fall asleep.

--

And here the birds are starting to sing and I'm still awake. Besides, Millicent's snoring is louder than usual. I knew they had too much to drink.

- 'Acrameu…'

That's Pansy talking in her sleep.

There used to be a time when I would try and understand what she said, hoping to learn something about Draco. But unfortunately, even during her sleep, Pansy's words are stupid and don't make any sense.

It's not that I don't like Pansy… Well, ok, I really don't like Pansy.

But the fact is, however things turn out, a few years from now, through money (her parents', or her husband's), she'll be a powerful woman. It can help to have the right blood.

That's why I have to play the kind friend. I want a high level job at the ministry, and I might need her one day.

After Hogwarts I intend to pursue program in linguistic studies. The program is run by the international magical cooperation. During three years, I'm going to travel around the world, and to learn more than two hundred and fifty languages. The program takes in only the best.

Examiners are coming Tuesday to Hogwarts, five days from now. I don't now how many candidates there will be, but anyway, places are not limited, so I don't really mind the other's abilities.

Perhaps I should have tried to be a prefect instead of Pansy, but then I should have been more respectful of the rules, and that's not really easy for me.

It's a shame, because it looks good on the school report. But instead, on it, I have remainders of my rivalry with Draco. But it's his entire fault, he provokes me… most of the time…

That's why I went to Hogsmeade with one of the school's broomsticks, I had a bet with him that I would bring back a box of firewhisky.

Or when I went into the forbidden forest and brought back a giant spider. I really freaked out that day. It was in sixth year, and some of the other Slytherins had learned from Slughorn that some of those lived hidden in the forest.

But Draco had told me that I always stayed under cover and that I never faced danger, and, very cleverly, I found nothing better to go and fight the spiders and bring back a corpse into Hogwarts.

Anyway, all that stuff I did weren't very bright now I think of it. But, in a fit of anger, that sounded brilliant.

- 'Buhuut…'

Even when she's asleep, you can't get her to shut up…

I wonder why Draco never went out with her, I know she's not really beautiful, but this big noodle is so devoted to him, it would be easy for Draco.

--

Maybe I could stay here all day long tomorrow. But no, the girls would certainly notice what's happening. Ok, then from now on, my fight is starting, no Dark Lord, no live or dead matter, only my heart and my dignity.


	2. Chapter 2: Second day, the challenge

**Chapter 2: Second day, the challenge.**

What time is it? If it's not past noon yet, I won't wake up…

Shit, it's 1.00 pm, I don't have much choice.

At least it's past lunch time, I'll go to the kitchens: I won't run into him there.

--

2.00 pm, I really took my time. I won't be able to go back to bed until five hours, so the only place I can go without risking seeing him, is the library.

--

I settle into my usual peaceful corner. When I'm there nobody can see me. Only a few people who know me quite well know that it's my favorite place in the library.

- 'Hi Malorie.'

What is it? … Phew, no problem.

- 'Hi', I reply.

- 'When are the examiners going to come?' my Hogwarts mate asks, sitting down next to me, so that she can't be seen by the other students in the library either.

- 'On Tuesday.'

She keeps glancing around discreetly, we'd better not be seen chatting together.

- 'Not to stress out?'

My whole future is going to be settled in twenty little minutes, of course, I'm on the verge of freaking out.

- 'A little bit.'

- 'How are they going to judge you, if they're not testing you on your knowledge?'

- 'They want to know my motivation, they'll be able to check my knowledge according to my N.E.W.Ts results.'

I think you're the only one to be surprised that one can be judged on something else that one's knowledge.

- 'Did you know Malfoy was a spy?'

I don't think I should have asked this, she could guess something. No, everybody is talking about that, I'm getting paranoid.

- 'Yes', she says, 'but don't tell it to anybody.'

Don't worry, I can keep secrets.

- 'I won't.'

Wow wow, who's coming towards us? My interlocutor's suitor, who also happens to be a distant cousin of mine.

- 'Hi Malorie', he says, getting to our table.

- 'Hi cousin.'

I only call him this way when they are no other students around.

Watch out, he's going to talk to her, come on cousin, you can do it, be brave…

- 'I wanted to tell you that… McGonagall is waiting for us at 7 o'clock in her office'.

… Let's run away, quick! Congratulations cousin, all this time you've known each other and you still didn't find the way to make up your mind. But be careful, she's going to answer know…

- 'OK.'

Brilliant! Luminous! The damned worst snails I've ever met, they love each other, they know it, and then they still won't do anything. This is really pathetic. In twenty years, they might start the preliminaries.

- 'See you, cousin.'

- 'See you, I answer.'

Outside Hogwarts, we only see each other during great family events, as weddings or burials. We don't rub shoulders with each other. Hanging around with him and his family doesn't make a good impression, especially on my grand-parents.

- 'Considering the great affection he showed towards you, I assume you aren't going out with each other yet?' I ask.

Here it is, she stops staring at the door and crashes on the table.

- 'No', she says, taking her head into her hands, 'and what's more, we're not going to see each other very much from now on.'

Well… do I have to comfort her now?

- 'Maybe you should make the first move', I suggest.

- 'Because you made it, didn't you?'

What? Oh she knows something! Stay calm, and simply deny everything outright!

- 'The first move towards whom?'

That might not be very clever.

- 'Towards Zabini!' She exclaims.

Blaise, of course, who else could have she been thinking about?

Alert, she is looking at me suspiciously! Put a bold front !

- 'In fact, it was sort of both of us, we were sitting on one of the sofas in the common room, everybody had gone to bed, and at some point we moved closer to each other, and we took the initiative simultaneously.'

Maybe I gave to many details, I always do when I'm panicking.

- 'Very romantic', she says.

I said too much, I knew it. I have to change the subject.

- 'So what about you, after Hogwarts, you're still doing a formation to enter the department of magical creatures?'

- 'Yes', she says, 'but it only starts mid-August, so I'll have some holidays.'

Lucky devil! As soon as the Hogwarts express will have arrived at the station, I'll myself get in the program's train. I'll have a three minutes holiday between platforms 9 ¾ and 7 ¼. I'm going to live three years on this train, let's hope the other students won't be complete idiots.

- 'I have to go, Headgirl duty…' She says.

She leaves.

Drat, she's forgotten her potions book.

- 'Hermione!'

Ho no, it can't be real, I called her in front of all the students in the library.

She turns round and runs to me quickly so that the scene doesn't take long.

- 'Thank you', she says, taking her book back.

We give each other a worried look and she runs away.

I don't like it for other students to know that I get on with Hermione Granger, she's muggleborn. As far as I am concerned, I don't believe that blood's important, but the other Slytherins do.

It must upset Hermione too, I'm a Slytherin and she's a Gryffindor, a mini-phoenix moreover.

--

Half pas four! I'm going to have diner now, Draco is used to have it later. I don't think there are many chances for me to run into him in those corridors around the library.

… Ho no, that can't be true, he's here, alone, right in front of me, and he's seen me, I can't turn back!

Be brave, breath…

Don't forget, arrogant smile, sarcasms, insults, I should tell him that he's become even more ugly that he used to be, that he's become a misshapen monster, a bloody sexy I want to… no! No! It's not that!

My god, he's talking to me! Focus! What's he saying?

- 'Are you avoiding me?'

How do you know? Ho no, he knows everything!

- 'Not really… I didn't know that my movements were spied on.'

Very nice reversal of the situation.

One… Two… Three seconds, he's hesitating… Very good.

- 'You're giving yourself too much importance', Draco says.

- 'Malfoy', I state very slowly, 'don't you realize you're the one who's always doing it?'

He starts laughing. I'm going to fly into his arms.

- 'No, I am very important that's all. Especially now I've helped the Order to destroy You-Know-Who.'

- 'I hope you don't think your name will stay engraved in history', I say, 'the only name people will remember is Harry Potter's.'

- 'My participation to this destruction is only a master key, Moon, he says. After that, it will be easy for me to increase the family treasure.'

- 'Provided, of course, that you could leave Hogwarts and the ministry protection. After the last war, it took more than two years to the aurors to capture all the Death Eaters. You'll have to hide yourself here, under cover: the very thing you reproached me for a whole year.'

- 'I've had enough risk for a few years', he says, 'I could do with some rest. On the contrary, the amount of risk you already took is very low. Except the few stupid and suicidal ideas you got to give yourself importance in front of the others.'

- 'Stupid and suicidal?' I ask cynically. 'Malfoy, I'm not the one who joined the Death Eaters and then became a mini-Phoenix, even if I admit your second choice was brighter, shameful for your pure-blood, but brighter.'

- 'There's nothing shameful in helping the Order of the Phoenix', he says.

Were getting to it, he's starting to lose his temper, yes!

- 'Potter has become your best friend? And you're going out with Loony?' I ask in a fake serious tone.

- 'You're really a pest', he says, sounding half furious.

- 'I'm not forcing you to speak to me', I say.

- 'Me neither', he answers.

- 'Fine', I'm going to have diner then.

I walk away until I hear a whisper.

- 'Chicken.'

I stop dead and turn round abruptly.

I might be a Slytherin, but I'm no chicken.

- 'What did you say?'

He turns round.

- 'I said… you were a chicken', he states with a smile.

He shouldn't smile to me like this, or he's going to hear my heart beatings.

- 'I'm not a chicken!' I say. 'At any rate, you're a bigger coward than me.'

- 'Do you really believe this?' He says.

There he is, back with his furious face on, and now he's getting nearer.

- 'Exactly', I answer.

- 'And I am quite sure of the opposite'.

- 'It seems we're making much progress', I state.

At least, he is, he's standing about a foot from me now.

- 'What about a little challenge?' He asks.

- 'I was going to suggest the same thing.'

He's to close now! What if I offered him to kiss me, isn't that a good challenge?

- 'I'll tell Nott and Millicent to concoct us something for tonight, he says, they'll be neutral. I was about to say Zabini, but he mustn't be now, I heard you two went out together…'

- 'Tonight', I stop him, 'very well.'

- 'Very well', he says.

We haven't moved, my lips are still a foot away from his, I'm in a nightmare… or in a dream, I can't make up my mind.

Don't look at his lips, stay focused on his eyes, don't look his lips…

- 'No fights in the corridors.'

We move apart abruptly.

Filch, you're my savior! He's so used to seeing us fighting that every time he finds us together, he believes we are.

- 'We weren't fighting', I say.

- 'Not yet', Malfoy adds in a low voice.

- 'Get off', orders Filch.

We move away, each on a different side.

My how-to-avoid-Malfoy evening is over, I'm going to have to spent it with him now.

--

- 'You haven't lost your time!' Millicent tells me, sitting down next to me.

Can't I have diner in peace ?

- 'Lost my time about what ?' I ask

- 'I just saw Theodore, he told me we add to organize some kind of challenge to decide on who has the more guts between you and Draco.'

- 'He provoked me', I sayH.

- 'Malorie', she states slowly.

Why this worried tone ? Especially from Millicent Bulstrode, the stone-hearted Lady.

- 'What', I ask turning to look at her.

- 'Draco spent a year with the Death Eaters, he is bound to have learned things', she says, 'he must have changed.'

The fact is, she is right. How could I have not thought about this earlier ?

- 'He must have become a little dangerous now.'

- 'I'll be careful', I say.

I leave the table and get off to my dormitory. I should learn to be afraid of Draco.

--

- 'Malorie', Pansy tells me, opening the door of the dormitory.

- 'Millicent and Theodore are ready, they're waiting for you with Draco.'

And with half of the Slytherins.

- 'Thanks Pansy', I answer, standing up.

As expected, the common room is full. Draco, Millicent and Theodore stand in the middle. Everybody is watching Draco and me with nasty smiles.

I move towards Draco.

- 'Well', says Theodore. 'Here's your challenge, you will have to fetch a broomstick we've set down between the branches of a tree in the middle of the forbidden forest. Millicent and I have bewitched the broomstick so that it diffuses a strong red light, this will enable you to see it from far away. Malorie, you will enter the forest through the path near Hagrid's hut. You Malfoy, through the path near the lake. The broom will be at the same distance of both of you. The one who'll bring the broom back will be the winner.'

I'm favored, I already know the forbidden forest.

- 'You can't attack each other, and you can't use broomsticks to get there, you have to go on foot', says Millicent.

Draco, Draco… You're scaring them, they fear you might damage me.

- 'Ok', Draco says, heading for the door in a hurry.

I follow him.

- 'Wait!' Millicent calls, 'there's one more requirement.'

That's what I thought, it was too easy for us to come back alive.

- 'Your wands', Millicent says.

- 'What?' Malfoy asks.

- 'Your wands', Millicent repeats, 'It's a magic-free challenge.'

- 'You're out of your minds' I say, 'I've already been in the forbidden forest, and without magic, you can't get out of it alive.'

- 'You don't have to go there, but I thought you wanted to test your guts…'

Touched.

I take my wand out and hold it out to Millicent. Draco quickly imitates me. I turn round and get out, Draco on my heels.

--

It's been at least five minutes that Draco and I are walking side by side silently, this can't last long.

Without magic! They're crazy, we're going to get ourselves killed… That's not enough to make me give up.

Here it is, the path is dividing. Draco goes towards the lake, and me towards Hagrid's hut. With my usual luck, he's going to be in his vegetable garden.

Bingo, he's here, I have to enter the forest right now, I'll join the path later.

--

It's a quarter past eleven, the curfew started long ago, I've been walking for at least four hours, and I still haven't seen any red light, or any creature that would try and kill me, not that I complain about it.

Usually, spiders don't get near the path and I hope they won't change their minds.

No centaurs either, I heard they had made peace with us, but I'm not sure it would apply to me.

There's something there, is it… ? Yes, the red light.

So all I have to do is run, and then localize precisely the tree, climb it, at least forty feet, to catch the broom, mount it and fly back.

Very simple indeed.

Especially since to there's no path to get to the broomstick, since it's dark, and I don't have a lamp, since I can't climb trees, since I have vertigo and thus never could fly a broomstick.

Easy.

What's more, I can hear strange sounds now, I mean, stranger than the others. Oh my god, something is getting close behind me. I'm really running now, bloody brambles… It's freaking me out even more.

-'Hagger?'

Help, that thing is talking, and it's making more noise than a herd of elephants.

The broom, I have to grab this bloody broom.

The thing's running after me, yelling.

- 'Hagger!!'

Hag… ? What? I don't have time to wonder.

- 'Ouch!'

Damn it, my ankle ! I can't help up.

Look at that, there are too sleds near me, they are tied up to tree trunks…

Woooww !

A giant !

He hasn't seen me, he's looking for me. I crawl slowly towards the other side where there is a huge oak tree behind which I'm going to hide.

Slowly… bloody dead leafs, they're going to make me being spotted. Yes, the oak tree, I reached it at leaaaas… aaahhh, a hole.

I've fallen with a blasted racket.

My life is going to end. Sorry, cruel word, to be as cruel as you are. Sorry mom to want a carrier more than a husband. Sorry my family to be disgraceful by my blood, sorry…

A hand sticks on my mouth and pulls me behind. I land hidden under a stump, stick to a guy I can't identify.

- 'Hagger?'

The giant leans over the hole. Hidden behind thick roots, we can't be seen.

The giant goes away from us, but stays nearby. I can hear him go round in circles. The red light must have attracted him. Slowly, I remove the hand that prevents me from speaking, and turn round.

My Draco! It's him, my hero.

- 'We wait for him to leave, and then we resume the challenge.' He says.

I nod in agreement.

Anything you want.

We're hiding in a very narrow place. I'm moving as far from him as I can. I'd rather stay stick to him, but I can't, he'd realize something.

The giant is coming back in our direction. Draco pulls me backwards, I stick to him again, hurrah !

If it were not for the giant and the stump, I could stay here for hours.

The giant stops right above us.

Under his weight, our shelter collapses partly.

Draco surrounds me with his arms and pulls me even more backwards.

My hearts beats faster, my breath gets quicker.

- 'Calm down', whispers Draco, 'he's going to hear you.'

And you're going to understand everything.

- 'Don't be afraid', he says.

Afraid ? Why should I be afraid ? Oh yes, the giant, Draco's takes my state for panic.

The giant goes away from us, and me from Draco.

Progressively, the giant's steps get more distant.

I take my head out of the stump, Draco's by my side.

Our arms are touching !

-'He's gone', states Draco, 'The challenge resumes'.

- 'I must have sprained my ankle', I say, 'I can't fetch the broomstick. Once you're back at Hogwarts, tell Millicent to come and get me.'

-'Don't give me orders', Draco says. 'I won't say anything to Millicent.'

And there he goes.

All I can do is wait for the morning. When Millicent doesn't see me back, she will give the alarm, and somebody will come for me.

Who's never dreamt of spending a night in a tree stump, between a giant and other fierce beasts ?

I should be more positive : I'll have great dreams. Draco saving me… Well, he saved me only because had the giant found me, he would have found him right after. So Draco saved himself. But I can still dream !

He's back, mounting the shining broomstick. He stops, six feet above me.

- 'You're going to sleep well here, Moon', Draco tells me with a mocking smile.

- 'Very well', I answer.

I can't stand up to face him, my ankle's hurting too much. I hate to be in a position of weakness.

- 'Your ankle's doubled size', Draco says in a neutral voice.

- 'Did you notice it too?' I say.

Now, I'd rather him go away. I don't want him to see me in his state.

- 'Ask me', Draco says all of a sudden.

- 'Ask what?' I ask.

- 'Ask me to bring you back', says Draco with a nasty smile.

What? He's really… I'll do the same if I were him.

- 'I'd rather die !' I say violently.

- 'That's what might happen to you', says Draco, looking over the stump.

- 'The giant's back', he says.

He's right, I can hear heavy footsteps.

- 'You've won, bring me back.'

- 'Maybe I should have been more specific : I want you to beg me', says Draco slyly.

The bast…

- 'Ok, well, Malfoy, I beg you to bring me back to Hogwarts.'

- 'You could look more convinced, I don't really get the feeling a giant's going to kill you.'

- 'What do you want me to say exactly?'

Long seconds go by.

- 'I want you to humiliate yourself.' He says, staring at me fixedly.

A true Slytherin.

The giant mustn't be further than three hundred feet now.

-'Are you aware that if you leave me here, you will have killed me indirectly?' I say.

- 'Nobody will be able to prove it', Malfoy says.

Millicent was right, he's become dangerous.

Seconds go by, the giant's coming closer, he must be a hundred feet away now.

Suddenly, Draco moves closer to me, takes my shoulders in his arms and helps me to mount the broom. Then he mounts it himself, in front of me.

- 'You're really a pest' He says.

- 'I'm a Slytherin', I answer, amazed.

The giant starts running towards us.

- 'Hang on!' Malfoy yells.

That's the only thing I want!

Couldn't you have avoided raising that vertically?

We're above the forbidden forest, the situation could almost have been romantic, but…

- 'Do you realize I saved your life twice?' Draco states.

Do you realize you held me in your arms?

- 'We'll discuss it later if you don't mind.' I say.

I've vertigo and I'd better not lose my concentration.

- 'Why?'

- 'Please.' I beg.

I hate humiliating me like this.

- 'Does the indestructible Malorie Moon have vertigo?' Draco asks.

Well, yes.

I don't answer, and just tap him slightly on the arm.

- 'That's a scoop', Draco says.

He makes a violent swerve. Instinctively I grab hold of him even more. He starts a set of pirouettes, laughing. I close my eyes, holding him as hard as possible.

- 'I'm begging you', I say, 'Stop, I'm really afraid.'

He stops laughing instantaneously and heads for the castle again.

- 'You can humiliate yourself, eventually', he says after a while.

He's really appalling, why do I have to be in love with this horrible guy?

He takes us to the windows of Slytherin's dormitories.

One of them is open. There I can see Theodore, Blaise, and both of Draco's gorillas, Crabbe and Goyle. The broomstick rushes into the window.

Almost straight away, Blaise catches Draco and punches him in the face.

- 'She has vertigo', Blaise yells.

Draco doesn't move, he's groggy.

- 'Blaise, stop', I yell.

Crabbe and Goyle wake up, grab Blaise and stop him from moving.

I get off the broom and… fall flat on my face.

Bloody ankle.

Theodore leans on me and carries me onto a bed.

He takes his wand out and points it towards my ankle.

Immediately, it goes back to a normal size, and the pain vanishes.

- 'Malfoy won', I say.

Crabbe and Goyle start releasing their grip on Blaise, who, automatically, jumps on Draco.

- 'Blaise stop, he saved my life.' I tell him.

- 'What?' Blaise asks, amazed.

This moment of carelessness costs him a nice punch from Draco.

A blue flash of lightning lights the room up.

Draco and Blaise find themselves propelled on opposite sides of the room.

Theodore puts his wand away in his pocket.

- 'Stop acting nonsense', he says, 'we're going down to the common room.'

Draco heads for the door and goes down the stairs.

--

- 'Are you OK ?' Millicent asks me, giving me my wand back.

- 'Yes', I answer, 'I'm tired, I'm going to bed.'

- 'Don't you want to celebrate my victory with us?' Draco asks in a low voice.

- 'Another day', I say, 'except that you're not going to have another victory against me, so make the most of this one.'

- 'You'll never change', Draco says, laughing.

- 'Never', I answer.

I run into my dormitory and crash on my bed without going to the trouble of taking of what were still, a few hours ago, clothes.


	3. Chapter 3

_S'il vous plait, laissez vos reviews en anglais correct, je ne le lis pas très bien. Désolé si mes réponses sont mal traduites..._

_Please, leave your reviews in correct English, I do not read it very well. Sorry if my answers are badly translated..._

_Translation of the fic of Loonyfan_

**Chapter 3: Third day, the love potion.**

2.00 pm. I just broke my personal record. I mean, this week's… I don't feel like getting up, I'd rather stay in my Draco's imaginary arms.

- 'Hey, are you awake?' Millicent asks.

Sh.

- 'I'm getting up' I say against my will.

- 'Hurry up', Millicent chuckles, 'this year's best scoop is happening right now in the common room.'

This year's best scoop? Crabbe and Goyle have learnt how to read?

- 'What's the scoop?' I ask.

- 'You'll see', she says, going out of the dormitory, a smile on her face.

Ten minutes later, I'm going down the stairs leading to the common room.

So, what's that scoop?

There's nothing, Millicent must have told me that to make me get up quicker. But I don't really see why she would…

Too late for lunch, I'll have to go to the kitchens again, and bother the houselv…

No! No, that can't be true! No, that can't be Draco and Pansy kissing each other. No!

- 'Did you see that?' Millicent states.

Wear a neutral face, quick!!

- 'Yes', I say, 'What's happening to them exactly?'

Very badly said, I can't focus.

- 'They're going out together since yesterday night', Millicent tells. 'Pansy's over the moon. This morning she received a love potion she wanted to use on Draco. Eventually she won't have needed it. She's trying to sell on the potion, by the way, if you're interested… It makes you fall in love with the first person you see. She's going to have a hard time selling it on, they are more elaborated products. She chose this one because she believed the results matched what she wanted the most.'

Keep on uttering your stream of stupidities, I don't care.  
I need to get out of here. I'm turning my back to the new couple, but I can still see their reflection in a window. They've eventually stopped their tongue soup. I'm not sure, but I think Draco's looking in our direction.

- '… in fact the effects are quite powerful, but you can still control yourself. That way you don't realize you are under the influence of a potion…'

What's she talking about? Who cares her lunacy!

- 'We'll talk about it later', I say, 'I'm starving.'

- 'OK', she says.

I'm almost running towards the exit.

Quick, find an empty room, not too close from the common room. Yes, here's one.

I get in, close the door and place an imperturbable charm on it. I lean back against it. Slowly, my legs give way beneath me, and my silent tears can at last become noisier.

It's no point going to the kitchens now, it's almost five o'clock.

I can't put hands on a mirror in this room. I still manage to arrange myself with the weak reflection in one of the windows: I remove the marks of my tears and cast myself a look-well spell. I would never have thought I would use it one day, it's one of Pansy's favorite spells.

I'm ready, I just have to go to diner now. Be brave! It's only one more challenge to take up, there are only six days left.

She's not going to feed him, is she? No, he takes this piece of tart. Phew!

- 'Will you go onto the grounds later?' Blaise asks me.

Though diving in the lake and having myself eaten by the giant squid is a suicidal technique worth trying, I'm pretty sure I could find something less painful. The astronomy tower for a start.

- 'Why would I?' I ask.

- 'Don't you know? The seventh year students from all the houses had planned to meet there to celebrate the end of schooling.' Blaise explains. 'I heard Harold Dingle is going to bring some Firewhisky…'

I could do with some of this right now.

The lovebirds get up and favor the great hall of a passionate kiss. I'm on the verge of puking… What wouldn't I do to be in Pansy's place!

- 'So, will you come? Everybody's going to be there!'

What? Oh yes, the former-pupil-to-be meeting on the grounds.

-'Yes, of course.'

I wouldn't miss that for anything!

- 'Great', Blaise exclaims.

I don't really have a choice, if everybody's going…

- 'You could tell us your version of what happened yesterday night', Blaise states.

- 'Has Malfoy told his?'

- 'Yes', Blaise answers, 'Strangely enough, he didn't enlarge on the subject as he usually does. Maybe he thought tonight's audience would be even more flattering. Or maybe he was in a hurry to join Pansy for a romantic date. Or he could have wanted you to be here to tell us all about his feat.'

- 'Well, we'll know for sure tonight', I say, getting worried.

I stand up.

- 'You barely ate anything', Blaise says in a reproachful voice.

- 'I'm not really hungry, and I had a late lunch.

I had no lunch at all, but who cares?

- 'Oh, good', Blaise says, sounding relieved. 'Because there will certainly be a lot of alcohol tonight, so you'd better not go there without having eaten.'

Yep, and I intend to get bloody drunk, at the risk of revealing a few things.

- 'See you tonight', Blaise tells me.

- 'See you tonight', I answer.

He's adorable with me again. Since our break-up he was distant, nice, but distant. Does he want us to leave Hogwarts in good terms? Or does he want to take up with me again?

I don't feel like taking up! Although for the last six days, it could be fun, it could also be dangerous, and most certainly painful… I'm thinking too much!

Millicent's dragging me outside.

There's really nothing to hurry about.

Of course, the Slytherins remain by themselves. So do the other students, but the other clan's boundaries are less visible.

Half of the crowd is glancing towards the slashed Potter, who's going out with my cousin again. If they keep it on, I'll soon become a relative of the survivor. A real nightmare!

The other half is glancing towards Pansy and Draco. I can see my cousin giving them disgusted looks while chatting with his sister, Potter, and of course, his secret soul mate, Hermione Granger.

Ten minutes later, the bottles promised by Harold Dingle arrive at last to me. I grab one.

I didn't seriously intend to drink, just a little, because Draco and Pansy are three feet from me, and because I can hear very unpleasant wet noises.

Blaise is next to me, he won't stop talking to me, and he's brushed against me several times. I think I've figured out better what he has in mind.

- 'You know Malorie…'

Blaise is whispering in my ear… Help! Couldn't he pick up a prettier one, there's no lack for it at Hogwarts.

- 'Since the party, I realize I may have made a mistake dumping you', says Blaise shyly, 'and when I saw Malfoy looping the loop in the air knowing you had vertigo, it became clear to me. Especially when I tried to explain Malfoy why I had hit him… Malorie, would you…'

- 'Let me interrupt you before you say something stupid', I say.

At last, I've woken up.

- 'It's been a month since we've broken up.'

- 'Two', Blaise corrects me.

- 'I'll go right after the end of the school year and I don't want to try anything now, maybe I don't want to try anything ever', I say. 'Don't be mad at me Blaise, I really like you, you might be the only Slytherin I really like. But it's not a good time for me.

- 'At least I'd have tried', says Blaise defeated.

He kisses me on the cheek and leaves to join Theodore Nott a little further.

Millicent is sitting next to me, I snatch the bottle she's holding from her, and drink a long sip directly from the bottle.

One hour later, after another story of Millicent Bulstrode's life, and another thirty sips of the strongest alcohol in the wizarding world, I'm starting to put my problems into perspective.

I'm not sure Millicent's words have somfing to do aboutit, I'd say this wonderfuuul bottle has. Good lord, even my thoughts are drunk!

-'We could maybe go up into my dormitory', Pansy says Draco.

- 'Oh no, there're going to mess everything up with there nightmarish thing.'

- 'What?' Pansy asks, turning round to me, looking furious.

- 'What, what?', I ask, trying to sound innocent.

- 'What you've just said!' She's still furious.

I turn round to Millicent.

- 'Have I thought aloud?' I ask her.

- 'I'm afraid you have', Millicent answers, half-surprised, half-amused.

I turn round to Pansy.

- 'Pansy, I'm sorry.'

- 'It's OK', she says, 'You look a bit drunk.'

- 'I'd say "completely", that would be closer', Draco sniggers.

- 'Hi Pansy', says Emma Dobb, a fourth year.

- 'Hi Emma', answers Pansy, looking puzzled.

- 'Do you remember what you told me about?' Emma Dobb asks, sounding hesitant.

- 'Oh yes', Pansy answers awkwardly.

-'Is it still OK?

- 'Well… Yes', answers Pansy.

- 'I'll be back in a minute, then', Emma says, leaving quickly.

A very clear conversation all in all.

- 'What was she talking about?' Draco asks.

- 'Nothing important', tells Pansy, 'Prefects stuff.'

I'd be surprised.

I can see Pansy looking everywhere around her and then staring at the empty bottles piling up behind the tree.

- 'I heard that Trelawney still hadn't been sacked for next year', Millicent tells.

UM UM went the little green frog one day…

-'…And the new Transfiguration teacher stays…' Millicent goes on.

... UM UM went the little green frog…

-… 'On the other hand, nobody seems to know whether the Defense against the Dark Arts teacher will stay or not.'

… UM UM went the little green frog one day… And the frogs went UM UM AR…

Shit, I can't remember what's next… And why on earth am I singing in my head? … That doesn't sound good… But at least, nobody can hear me… UM UM went the little green frog one day… Where's my bottle? Who is it that stole by boottle? There it is! It's rolled towards Pansy. That's crazy, it looks fuller now, and the firewhisky became fuchsia pink. It doesn't taste the same either. Oops, I'm not sure this is firewhisky. Who cares, it still tastes good.

- 'No!!' Pansy yells.

What's happening? My bottle, who's snatched my bottle from me? I'm not sure but I think I'm seeing Millicent and Pansy giving each other terrified glances.

- 'Come Malorie', Millicent tells me, 'I'm going to help you to go to bed.'

Whaaaye? I feel fine. Although my heart is acting strangely.

Millicent and Pansy help me up, Draco's right behind them.

- 'I'm up', I say.

- 'Quick', Pansy says, sounding worried.

What a silly goose, this noodle! Goose, noodle! I'm really having fun, I'm really thinking terrible things sometimes. I should build a compilation. I would call it Malorie Moon… Malorie Moon what now? I'll have to think about it?

- 'Quick', Pansy repeats, getting alarmed.

- 'It's OK, I've made three steps', I say.

I can see Draco beaming.

- 'Look at him, he's having a good laugh!' I say.

- 'No, not my Draco, not him, don't look at him, quick', Pansy says in a panicked voice.

- 'But what's happening?' Asks Draco, coming closer.

- 'Nothing', Pansy and Millicent answer simultaneously.

Pansy pushes me a little too brutally and I fall on the floor.

I'm lying on the ground when a violent pain appears in my heart.

- 'Aaarrgggg!!' I yell.

I roll on my side, holding my heart.

- 'Arrgg!!'

Bloody hell, what's this mess?

I can feel two hands on my shoulders, I think I've been forced to sit up.

I open my eyes. Draco's in front of me, crowned with light, even more beautiful, more handsome than he usually is. He's never going to be interested in me, but that's all I want…

- 'Hey!' I say, smiling to him.

Draco looks surprised.

I should have said something cleverer, no, boys don't like clever girls, Pansy told me so.

I have to touch him, it's of vital importance. My hands stroke his cheek shyly.

- 'Hey!' I repeat.

- 'Moon, are you OK?' Draco asks, amazed.

- 'I've never been that fine, all my problems vanish when I'm with you Draco', I say.

It's the first time I've ever called him by his first name, he looks surprised, he's looking at me in a strange way.

- 'Pansy!' He says after a few seconds. What was there in that bottle you snatched from her hands?

I can't see Pansy's face, and I don't care. My two hands are surrounding my love one's face now.

- 'You'll explain later', Draco tells Pansy sharply. 'How long does the effects last?'

- 'Considering how much she's had, they might last a few days' says Pansy, sounding guilty.

- 'We need an antidote', Draco states.

- 'That Gryffindor mudblood must have some, it's not the first time something like that happens, and with the weasel, they've helped a lot of students. Probably to cover the fact that the Weasley brothers are selling half of the products circulating inside Hogwarts', Millicent explains. 'But I don't think she'll be willing to help us.'

- 'Granger's Headgirl, she was attending this party and there was alcohol. Moon is drunk, she won't have a choice, she'll be forced to help us.'

Draco stands up.

- 'No', I tell him, 'stay with me.'

- 'Come with me', Draco says without looking at me.

Yeah, great! … Do Pansy and Millicent have to come with us?

While walking on Draco's side, I grab his hand. He looks at me, looking surprised, and turns his head away quickly, without removing his hand.

-'Granger, I need your help', Draco says, pointing me out with a movement of his head.

Hermione and I look into each other's eye, she looks surprised too.

- 'And you're the one asking Hermione for help?' Potter asks disdainfully. 'You treated her like dirt all those last week when we were fighting for the same side, and for all that, you're still asking her help.'

- 'Moon swallowed a love potion', Millicent explains, 'and we know you've got an antidote, Granger.'

- 'What potion was it exactly?' Hermione asks.

Draco and Millicent turn round to Pansy.

- '« First Look »', she says.

- 'You made her swallow a love potion?' Ron yells to Draco.

- 'It was an accident', Draco denies, 'and why should it be me?'

- 'Because you're the one Malorie's catching hold of', Ron says.

- 'It's no use, Ron', Hermione tells him, 'All my stock is hidden in the Room of Requirements. We're going there, the four of us only. The teacher will find it fishy enough.'

- 'You're not going to help him, are you?' Potter asks, sounding furious.

- 'We're not going to help him, we're going to help Malorie Moon', Hermione says.

Hermione's turning her back to us, she's trying to make Potter understand something if you ask me.

Suddenly, Potter stares at me, a flash of understanding runs across his face, he's just recognized me from Bill and Fleur's wedding.

Draco looks a little surprised.

I should explain to him what just happened. But what if he repels me the very moment I tell him the true about me, my family, my true friends…? I should be careful.

Look, we're on the third floor, I wonder what we're doing here.

- 'Look', I tell Draco, 'There're Trolls dancing.'

- 'I know', Draco answers without looking at me.

- 'Poor girl', Ron says, sounding overwhelmed.

What are they doing, the idiots? They are pacing in front of an empty wall. Somebody should check if the fight against the Death Eaters hasn't mess their nuts up.

Ho!

A door just opened. Draco pulls me kindly forward, still not looking at me.

- 'I wonder why Pansy bought that kind of potion, it's been a while since more elaborated ones exist', Ron says.

- 'The effect of the « First Look » is very special, that's what must have attracted her. Even after you stop taking the potion, you don't realize what's happened to you, unless you're told. Here, Malorie will know as soon as she awakes. The alcohol combined with the potion must have altered its power. Malorie should be able to control herself, but here, the love effect is much too powerful. I should check whether this is really normal.

Draco had sat down on a couch, I'm clung to him, holding him in my arms. I'd like him to turn his head so that I could kiss him, but he avoids looking at me. I think I'm putting him off me.  
- 'I'd do anything for you to love me, Draco', I say.

He's not even going into the trouble of answering. He's glaring at Ron, as though challenging him to say anything.

After a few minutes, Hermione lets go of a heavy book she puts back on the shelf.

She frowns, looks at me for a second, then heads for another cupboard and takes a small bottle out of it.

- 'This should do it', she says to Draco, holding the bottle out to him.

- 'Drink!' He tells me, still not looking at me.

Without stopping once, I swallow the potion.

A strong feeling of emptiness comes over me suddenly.

Oh, that can't be true! How could I??

Draco's not even looking at me.

- 'I'm sorry', I tell them all, rising up.

- 'It's not your fault', Ron tells me.

There's only one thing I want: to get out of here. I open the door and start running. I run, I still run, not realizing I've reached the top of the astronomy tower. I sit against the wall and show myself the last minutes again in my head.

Draco really hates me, he was contemptuous, and he didn't even bothered humiliating me more. That makes him even more horrible to me… Still, I'm happy I could hold him in my arms, I almost regret not having kissed him.

- 'Malorie?'

I raise my head. Hermione is standing in front of me.

- 'How did you find me?'

- 'With a map, it would be too long to explain.'

- 'I'm sorry I have bothered you', I say

- 'It's nothing, you know it', Hermione says. 'But you, how are you?'

-'As someone who's just been humiliated and who's made a fool of herself.' I answer.

I'd like to unwind on Pansy.

- 'Did you tell anyone?' Hermione asks.

- 'I just told you', I answer.

- 'I'm not talking about that, but about the fact that you're secretly in love with Malfoy', Hermione explains.

Oh no! This is not true, please help me! Help, I've been unmasked, somebody help me!!

- 'What are you talking about?' I say in a neutral voice.

- 'It's the only explanation for the strange effects of the potion', Hermione states calmly.

-'Alcohol', I say.

- 'No', Hermione states, 'Alcohol made the beginning of the effects very painful, that's it. What happened next did because you're in love with Malfoy.'

Oh, please, stop, I'm going to faint!

- 'No', I say, 'there must be another explanation.'

-'I always knew you were very good at hiding your feelings, but not that good, it's really impressive. You must be on the verge of exploding.'

Yes!

-'No!'

- 'You can take off your shell with me, I won't say anything. You're the first who realized that I was in love with Ron.'

- 'Because for you, it was obvious', I say.

BIG MISTAKE!!

- 'You see, you're admitting it', Hermione says with a small smile on her face.

Here it is.

- 'Ron was very affected by seeing you with Malfoy. I assume he imagined straight away that he was going to become a relative of Malfoy's.'

- 'I thought the same when I saw Potter and Ginny', I say.

- 'Well, I hope that despite the cousin's loathing, this will happen', Hermione says.

Strangely enough, I have the feeling that a weight is vanishing from my shoulders.

- 'By the way', Hermione says, 'Malfoy know what you're planning on studying next year. Ron told him. Malfoy found it strange that Ron knew, but he justified it by telling he knew many things by being a prefect.'

- 'OK', I say. 'I'm going to go to bed now, I'm starting to have a headache.'

- 'Have a good night', Hermione says.

- 'You too', I say.

- 'I forgot to tell you!'

I turn round.

- 'Malfoy implied he would probably break-up with Pansy.'

I smile at Hermione thankfully, and run away.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Fourth day: A surprising offer**

Ten in the morning!

I'll go and take my breakfast with the other this time. I'm sick of hiding, and anyway, Draco's bound to bump into me sooner or later.

I go down to the common room.

- 'Malorie!'

I turn round to see Millicent and pansy coming up to me.

- 'Malorie', Pansy repeats awkwardly, 'I'm really sorry for what happened yesterday.'

You'd better.

- 'I was humiliated', I state in a low voice.

- 'At any rate, nobody else than us knows. Draco asks us not to tell anything, he told we could be in trouble if this was to get known', Millicent reassures me.

That's a start.

- 'Malorie', Pansy repeats one more time, 'I feel so horrible.'

We've got it.

- 'That's OK', I say.

You'll still have to explain to me how come you found it clever to fill a bottle with a love potion.

- 'I had my punishment in certain a way, Draco broke up with me yesterday night. I cried all night long', Pansy tells. 'I know I was wrong, but he could have waited a little while…'

Pansy Parkinson's compassion towards others has its limits.

- 'I'd already ordered a present to celebrate our first week together.'

Now, this is disturbing more than anything else.

- 'I'm going to have breakfast', I say, 'I'm sorry for you Pansy.'

No, I'm not sorry for you at all Pansy… There are plenty of little butterflies flying in my stomach.

- 'Thanks', answers Pansy.

--

On the stairs I meet two Gryffindor first years. I don't know everything that's told about the Slytherins at the lion's, but I know for sure that the small Gryffindors have the fear of their little lives when they see me.

It's not usual for me to have breakfast in the great hall on a Sunday morning. There's barely anybody in the room, worse than on a Saturday morning. I know it, I had a breakfast here on a Saturday one time in January… Last year.

I sit in the usual seventh year corner, even though there are no other seventh years with me.

At the furious feline table, Ginny is feeding Potter out of her own spoon, they are disgusting. Hermione smiles kindly, but I'm sure she feels like bringing her breakfast up.

Wow wow! I saw that Hermy! This small glance of hope towards Ron!

I wouldn't dare to point it out to her. Well, it's more that I can't, now that she knows I'm stuck on Draco Malfoy in a broken-heart-terrible way. This arrogant little ferret who keeps humiliating me…

Oh no! My cute little ferret is entering the great hall.

He's walking towards me with Theodore Nott.

Of course, they weren't going to take root at the blue badgers table.

Draco's looking as if he were trying to make Theodore understand that he'd rather settle down with the fourth years than in the usual seventh years corner, where, let me remind you, I'm the only one sitting.

Theodore doesn't seem to know about the deep disgrace of the love potion hidden in the firewhisky bottle. He forces Draco to sit down in front of me.

Shame, shame, shame!

- 'Hi Malorie', Theodore tells me.

- 'Hi', I answer.

- 'You're up? It's only ten thirty you know?' Theodore says, in an amused voice.

Ha, ha, ha, I'm laughing so loudly that I might pee in my clothes.

- 'I know', I say with a happy smile on my face, 'I fell off my bed.'

Draco looks at me a second time, then goes back to his bowl.

He doesn't seem to have had a good night either, there are shadows under his eyes, I must have given him nightmares! Or worse! His break-up with pansy must have affected him a lot. Of course, they'd been going out together since what, twelve hours?

I feel quite sad suddenly.

- 'What were you saying about the ministry's tactic?' Theodore asks Draco.

- 'After Hogwarts, there going to send me elsewhere, we still have to decide where. I'll have to take a potion to change my physical appearance.'

I'm note sure that my Draco remembers that Theodore's father is one of the Death Eaters who want him dead.

-'Polyjuice potion?' Theodore suggests.

- 'No, something else, something that changes only a few parts of your body', Draco explains.

How awful! The beautiful body of my Draco, with those handsome blue-gray eyes that can be so sweet and yet terrifying the next second. They can't take that from him, can they?!

I've finished my meal. Although I feel very happy in front of Draco, I can't have a fourth helping of porridge as an excuse to stay at the table.

Eventually, I force myself to stand up und leave, giving Theodore a small wave.

All together, Draco looked at me three times: when he arrived, during my short chat with Theodore, and now, while I'm leaving the great hall. I might be turning my back to him, I have eyes behind my head and I felt his look on my neck for at least three seconds. He doesn't dare looking at me in the eyes.

I don't know what I prefer us to do: ignore each other or fight against each other.

Because as it is now, he could hardly have been more cold. Not even a tiny remark, nothing! There was no lack of subjects yet: my waking-up time… And of course my cruel debasement of yesterday night. Damned potion!

--

Let's see, where am I going to spend time? The library?

As usual. It's the only place where I don't risk bumping into the farmyard animals: Pansy and Millicent as the gooses, Mini-Phoenixes' fans as hens, and Draco Malfoy as the Slytherin rooster.

--

Hermione's already there, I didn't see her leaving the great hall. With my loving dear in front of me, that's not much of a surprise if I didn't.

There are three other students in the room.

I grab a book dealing with the way to pass an oral examination and head for my usual corner without a glance at Hermione

Twenty seconds later, she's got to me.

- 'What's new?' She asks in a low voice.

- 'Malfoy forbade Pansy and Millicent to tell anybody about what happened last night', I say, 'He reckons he might have trouble because of it.'

-'Of course, it's better for him to avoid being mentioned in this kind of stories', Hermione agrees. 'But I think it would be easy for him to get out of it… So be careful, he might change his mind…

- 'OK', I say. 'What about you?'

-'Nothing special', Harry is once again a little disturbed to know that Ron has a cousin in Slytherin house. We'd told him this summer, but with Ron's whole family at the wedding… He got confused and forgot some people temporarily.'

He can keep ignoring me, I really don't mind.

- 'In fact, Harry is really prejudiced against the Slytherins', Hermione explains.

-'Better being prejudiced against Slytherins than against muggleborns.'

- 'Absolutely!'

- 'And what's new about the snail?' I ask.

- Ron?

Who else?

- Yes.

- Nothing.

They're appalling!

- 'The end of the school year is in six days, you could take the initiative in making thing move a little bit', I say.

- 'Because you took it, didn't you?'

I've got the feeling I already had such a conversation.

- 'Are you going to tell Malfoy?' Hermione asks.

-'Tell him what?'

Please, tell me she's forgotten everything during the night.

- 'You know perfectly well what I'm talking about! Tell him you're in love with him', Hermione says.

I'm seen through

- 'Never', I cry out.

-'Why?'

- 'Because he hates me, and I'm supposed to hate him too', I explain.

-'You can still tell him', Hermione insists.

- 'Because you told Ronnie, didn't you?' I provoke her.

-'He already knows without me explaining it', Hermione states slowly. 'At least I hope.'

At least they get on with each other, more or less. They don't know their luck. And those congenital idiots won't do anything.

-'I know what you're thinking', Hermione says.

I'd rather you didn't.

-'You think I should speed things up before the end of the term.'

Not far.

- 'Yes you should.'

- 'I don't feel up to it', she says, sounding downcast.

Brave Gryffindors! … What a joke!

-'You could regret it your whole life', I say.

- 'You too.'

- 'It's different for me', I say.

- 'Why?

-'You know perfectly well why it is! For me it's only one way. You and Ron are really in love with each other.'

- 'Yeah', she says, sounding unconvinced.

--

After a few seconds of silence, I decide to speak.

-'I'm going to read that outside', I say, 'I want to enjoy the sun.'

- 'See you later', Hermione says.

In fact, I really need to go to the bathroom.

Of course, the nearest girl's bathroom is the one on the second floor. The sniveler's.

--

Moaning myrtle doesn't even see me, she's sitting on a sink and she's crying… As usual!

I'm getting ready for going out of the booth when somebody enters the toilets. I thought these were the emptiest toilets of Hogwarts!

-'Good afternoon Myrtle.'

My Draco, my Draco!! It's him, I don't believe it!

Myrtle stops crying straight away.

- 'Draco!' She exclaims in a languorous voice. 'You said you'd come and see me yesterday night, I waited for you!'

You had the eternity to wait.

- 'Something came up and I couldn't come', Draco explains.

I'm the something.

- 'Nothing serious I hope', Myrtle squeals. 'Did somebody bother you? Harry? Or…'

-'Nothing serious', Draco reassures her. 'It was only… wait a minute…'

I wait five seconds without a clue on what's happening.

Suddenly, Myrtle's furious head appears through the door.

-'Get out!' She yells.

I open the door with full force.

-'What are you doing here?' Draco asks, his face completely blank.

He fears I might tell everybody he gets on with Moaning Myrtle.

-'Knitting', I say.

- 'Hilarious', Draco answers, 'Where you listening to us?'

- 'I hadn't planned to, but I came here before you', I answer in a cold voice.

I head for the door.

Speak, say something, anything!!

-'We should have another little challenge', I provoke him, 'I want a revenge. And we shouldn't bother drawing a crowd of Slytherins for this'

I open the door.

- 'Tonight, eight o'clock in the trophy room', Draco says.

What? I didn't mean it!

- 'There's something I wanted to offer', he goes on saying. 'Only the two of us.'

My fantasy box just opened

- 'Very well', I say.

I shut the door after me. I'm going outside, I need fresh air.

--

Here I am, the winner… I lost one more chance to keep quiet. I wonder what he's planned.

As usual, it will be something we've never done before, so it won't be in the forbidden forest.

Why in the trophy room anyway? Nobody ever goes there, except for the couples who snog there when it's too cold outside. But I'd be surprised if my Draco was thinking about something like that. I'll think about it myself, we're going to be in the same room… the two of us… alone!

I can't wait! But all things considered, he must want us to duel. The trophy room is perfect for this… And I was told it's already happened.

I remember that Millicent suggested Draco may have become dangerous after having joined the Death Eaters. That's a disaster, he could be able to kill me!

--

Have you ever noticed that when you want a schedule event to come quickly, time never passes quick enough? As in the end of Binns' lesson for example.

On the contrary, when you fear the arrival of an event, like the end of the holidays, or Draco's leaving Hogwarts, time passes surprisingly fast.

Tonight, I'm going to see Draco, and I can't decide whether I'm in a hurry to be there or not. My mood changes every half hour.

As a result, lunch was too long, my working afternoon was too short, Pansy's laments on her break-up with Draco were too long not that surprising, and dinner was too long.

It is now eventually a quarter to eight, I'm in the bathroom, and guess what I'm doing… I'm dressing up! At least I'm trying, and above all, it mustn't be obvious that I spent hours here.

It's been hours that I've been trying to brush my hair. I've just noticed something: when they're brushed, they're not that bad, they don't stand up in every direction. I'm ready to advertise for L'Oréal, because I'm worth it.

Don't ask me what L'Oréal is, I don't have a clue: Hermione used to say that when Lavander Brown was always waving her hair to seduce Ron.

Aren't my teeth too white?

What a great philosophical question? I could take Pansy's place.

My bimbos are still in position. "Bimbos", that's something I invented the day I confessed to Hermione my complex about the early and fast growth of those two bulky things.

--

OK, five to eight.

Let's go, girl.

I go down to the common room and disappear before getting caught by Millicent who's roaming around the room looking for somebody to harass. I cross the door and head for the trophy room.

Did I put on too much perfume? I was careful to put on a jasmine one, as my shampoo, to be less suspicious.

What about my eyelashes? Can you see that I've bent them? ... And my nails, is it obvious that I bite them? Did I choose the right shoes?

OK, stay calm.

--

I open the door of the room slowly. Draco's handsome! He's leaning back against the wall next to the window. He's damn elegant. You can see it all the more so when he's not wearing the Hogwarts uniform, but the newest trendy robes of Madam Malkin's.

First of all, don't rush towards him.

- 'So', I say, 'explain.'

- 'Good evening to you too', Draco says with an arrogant smile on his face.

Grrr… Don't fly into his arms…Don't fly into his arms…

- 'Let's skip the courtesies between us, Malfoy, OK?' I say, trying to imitate is tone.

He burst out laughing. He goes slowly up to a glass cage on which several engraved badges have pride of place.

-'Look', says Draco, pointing out the middle one.

Carefully, I slowly go up him and read:

'Tom Marvolo Riddle, special award for service to the school.'

-'This Tom Marvolo Riddle is the Dark Lord', Draco explains.

-'I know', I say.

Hermione told me at the end of our second year.

- 'You know?' Draco states skeptically.

'I take my wand out and write « Tom Marvolo Riddle » with its point. Then I make the letters move to write: « I am Lord Voldemort ».

Thanks Hermy!

- 'You see', I say with an immoderate arrogance, I needed no help to notice that. No need to call Malfoy for that. If you wanted to try and impress me, you failed.

For a second, Draco seems disconcerted. But he quickly comes round.

- 'I don't need to try and impress you Moon', he says, 'I can do it without trying.'

-'Let me laugh', I say ironically, 'so, this challenge, explain it, because I don't want to spend the night here.'

- 'It's a lifetime challenge', Draco states. 'To know which of us can hold on the longest.'

-'Explain yourself', I say, immediately thinking about Moaning Myrtle.

- 'We'll see how long I can hold on without telling anybody you felt madly in love with me…' Draco starts.

- Hold on! I cut him short.

- … 'because of a love potion', Draco goes on, 'And we'll see how long you can hold on without telling anybody you heard a conversation between me and Moaning Myrtle.

I'm really favored.

- 'You're that ashamed of your friendship with Myrtle-I-live-in-the-bathroom-pipes?' I ask in a fake amused tone.

- 'No more than you of having said you'd do anything for me to fall in love with you', Draco provokes me.

I stop laughing straight away.

He wants us to keep secret our respective shames, that's perfect with me.

- 'Very well', I state, 'I won't say a word on your strange friendships, and you won't say a word on…'

-'Your deep love for me', Draco completes.

You're not supposed to know that!

- 'My momentarily loss of control', I correct him.

A nasty smile spreads out on Draco's face.

He holds out his hand towards me.

I shake it, trying to put on a neutral face.

- 'Now that we've got a deal, I can speak freely', Draco says, 'so, like this you're mad about me?'

Yes!

- 'Malfoy…' I warn him, frowning.

- 'I could have taken advantage of the situation', Draco says with a malicious smile on his face.

If only you had.

- 'Pansy would have loved that', I answer. 'By the way, I heard Moaning Myrtle was a mudblood when she was alive.'

- 'I know that', Draco says quickly. 'I wonder what Zabini could have liked about you, you're really a pest.'

-'That's none of your business, Malfoy.'

- 'OK, you're pureblood, and any true wizard family would want to be bound to such a noble family as yours. Mainly because apart from you, there are no fools in your family. But Zabini is less a stickler for blood, he could have been happy with a half-blood, the stupid boy', Draco says.

I'm half-blood.

- 'Maybe you've got unknown abilities', Draco suggests.

He looks at me attentively from head to foot… Translation: he gives me an openly libidinous look

-'Well hidden then', Draco says, looking back in my eyes.

- 'If that's the case', I say, 'You'll never find out, Malfoy!'

-'Don't worry', Draco says, 'I've no intention to find anything out about you, Moon.'

Unfortunately, I already know that!

- 'That's lucky', I say.

-'Yet, for a while, I've starting considering every options', Draco explains, sounding almost awkward. 'Half of the noble families won't want to take me in them since I helped the Order of the Phoenix. I still had Pansy, but I'm afraid my trust in her is restricted at the moment.

What? Is it a dream or is he… trying to… tell me that… I might… become…?

-'And what makes you believe my family and I would approve of you?' I say in a neutral voice.

- 'Your family always kept Death Eaters at a distance, even if you're denying it', Draco explains.

He's right, my family might have every faults in the world, it's never been involved in those things. We're one of the last Death-Eater-free pure-blood family.

- 'Your choice might be restricted, Malfoy', I say, 'But mine is not. I suggest you find someone else to spend your time with.'

Actually, I'm free, you can spend it with me.

- 'When I said my choice is restricted, it meant you're the last girl at Hogwarts who's worthy of my rank', Draco explains, getting slowly nearer. 'The last one my family would approve of.'

I'm not what you think, I'm not really worthy of your rank, Draco

- 'You're going to have to look elsewhere', I say, 'You might find a free girl in an institution for retired people.'

Draco stares at me.

- 'You can't reject a Malfoy', he says, 'Just as you can't refuse Order of Merlin first class.

-'And I'm rejecting you, Malfoy or not Malfoy', I say.

-'If I go and ask your family, they will force you to try', Draco says, clenching his teeth.

I'll try whenever you want Malfoy. But I don't want to go out with you knowing that you don't have for me the same feelings that I have for you. I would hurt even more.

I burst out laughing.

A forced laugh of course. I really can't see anything funny in this situation.

-'Try what, Malfoy?' I ask.

Draco stares at me, not speaking.

- 'Try and go out with me', he states.

I burst out laughing again.

Forced laugh again, I'd rather cry, considering how disgusted he looks to have to speak to me. His will to perpetuate his name with somebody worthy of it is even stronger that I thought.

- 'Malfoy, Malfoy…' I say. 'Even though you're right on a point: our families would be glad to learn such news, let me remind you that we don't really get on with each other. As far as I am concerned, my dearest desire is to throw you in a pool full of maggots.'

Eurk!

Draco's smiling again.

- 'And mine is to leave you alone with the giant in the forbidden forest.'

- 'You had your chance and you let it go', I say. 'You see, we hate each other.'

-'I can't stay a bachelor until everybody's forgotten I helped the Order of the Phoenix', Draco explains.

- 'Poor Malfoy', I say, faking pity.

He's moving closer to me. He doesn't smile any more.

Wow!! He's just looked at my lips!

- 'What are you doing here?' I ask coolly.

Draco stops, we're almost touching.

- 'You can't reject a Malfoy', he says.

Suddenly, he moves his face closer to mine and he… kisses me.

I can't believe it! … Hurrah, Hurrah…! No, repel him! I can't be with him, he doesn't love me!

At least I repel him and punch him in his face like a real muggle.

- 'I'm rejecting you, Malfoy', I say.

- 'You're really the worst pest I know!' Draco yells. 'Don't you realize who I am? Don't you know my blood, my rank, my money? ...'

- 'I know all that', I yell in return. 'But I want somebody who won't betray me, somebody whom I can trust fully. And I want somebody who's not going to hurt me, and you are, Malfoy!

- 'Try and find better that me!' Malfoy shouts, 'I'm the perfect guy for you… as for every other girl.'

I won't find better, that's true.

- 'You don't understand anything Malfoy', I say. 'You don't know me. I'll have my money alone, without a male to support me. And whatever my family might say, to me, blood is nothing. Pure-blood, half-blood, muggleborn, muggle, we're all equals. The rest of the world is better than you, Malfoy.'

Draco looks stunned.

- 'Very well', He says, sounding furious.

He heads for the door.

-'Since you don't want me…', he says, opening the door.

- '…I'll go and talk to your mother, she will force you', he ends, slamming the door.

--

I wait a few seconds, and then I get out of the room. I need an empty room… for the second time in two days.

Here's one.

I enter, lock the door, and lament over having been forced to repel the man I love. The only man I've ever loved.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: Fifth day: Miss Pimpernel.**

- 'I'm coming', I utter without opening my eyes.

- 'Moon, get up', a cold voice says.

Moon? Why would Millicent call me Moon? Why would Millicent have a man's voice?

I open my eyes, I'm still in the empty room. I must have slept here.

- 'Lessons have already started, come.' Draco orders me coldly.

Draco!!

Let's hope my tears aren't visible… I can pretend they're shadows under my eyes…

-'What are you doing here, Malfoy?' I ask, trying to be as cold as possible.

- 'Millicent and Pansy had a panic fit when they saw you weren't there, they believed you might have done something stupid', Draco explains, 'like throwing yourself from the top of the astronomy tower. Pansy believes you're depressed because you don't have a boyfriend and because of what happened with her potion. I told them to go to their classes, and I went to the trophy room and looked for you around it… So now, get up, hurry to get changed and to take your books.

I get up with difficulty. It's Monday, I have lessons and I'm late once again, and I'm positive I'm going to get detention. I rush towards the way out, Draco on my heels.

- 'It's OK', I tell Draco, 'you can go.'

- 'No, I'll wait for you, or I'm going to get detention. You can back me up and tell the teacher that I went looking for you.'

It's natural.

-'Chicken', I say.

I'm not nice.

- 'No, I'm only thoughtful', Draco replies.

I'm sure I'm going to get detention. The new Transfiguration teacher, Nymphadora Tonks, can be very nice, and very strict at once… In my opinion, I won't bump into her best side by being twenty minutes late.

I climb the stairs to the girl's dormitory and notice to my great surprise that Draco's six feet behind, following me.

- 'I thought there was s a spell preventing boys from climbing those stairs', I say.

- 'It's been a thousand years since that spell was cast, you don't seriously believe that nobody's found a way to get around it', Draco explains with a smile on his face.

And of course you know about it.

- 'Of course… The girl's dormitory…'

- 'Disgusting', I say.

I open to door to my dormitory, Draco's still following me.

- 'You could at least wait downstairs', I say.

Stay!

- 'No, the teachers could find me there.'

I pout doubtfully.

Yes!

- 'Wait here', I say in a casual voice, 'I'll have a quick shower.

I go in the bathroom and lock the door.

Two minutes thirty seconds later, I go out, wearing a long tee-shirt: the only thing I managed to find. I forgot to take my clean clothes before entering the bathroom.

Draco's lying down on by bed, his hands behind the nape of his neck.

Fantasy-box re-opened.

- 'Don't mind me', I say.

He sits up on his elbows, wearing an amused smile.

- 'I've never seen such a long tee-shirt', He says.

I open my wardrobe and grab a uniform.

- 'Oh my god!' Draco cries out. 'How many books do you have in there?'

Never enough in my eyes.

- 'A few', I answer.

I shut the wardrobe quickly.

I can feel Draco coming closer to me.

I turn round, he keeps moving forward, looking at me in the eyes, I move back and… hit the wardrobe. Draco keeps moving forward, at last he stops, a foot from me.

- 'Have you thought about my offer?' Draco asks.

- 'Yes, I'm hesitating', I say.

- 'Really?' Draco asks, looking suddenly concerned.

I love you.

- 'I don't know if you're suicidal or completely crazy!' I say with a thin smile.

Draco glances at me furiously.

- 'What were you doing in this classroom?'

I was moping because of you.

- 'I was waiting for Millicent and Pansy to go to bed', I state.

BLUNDER!!

- 'What… what, what!! Draco exclaims, exulting.

He has the look of a police inspector who's just made a criminal confess.

- 'Nothing', I say.

- 'Wait a second, I didn't think there were problems between you', Draco states, smiling. 'It means you hate them… And yet, you're adorable to them. Maybe you're horrible to me because you adore me.

Yeah.

- 'Malfoy, let me remind you that you started being horrible to me, I just protected myself', I say.

- 'Oh really? Would you refresh my memory please?'

Believe it or not, but he's still standing a foot from me.

- 'In fourth year, a little before Christmas', I say, 'at least I think.'

I'm sure of it, how could I forget!

-'Well… Yes, it's true, now that you say it', Draco says.

We stay rooted on the spot for a few short seconds.

- 'Do you wear something under your tee-shirt?' Draco asks.

No.

- 'One more thing you'll never know', I answer.

A few more seconds go by, without Draco's deigning to move.

- 'I thought we were in a hurry', I say.

- 'It depends', Draco replies.

- 'On what?' I ask.

- 'On your hitting me or not.'

He wants to kiss me! He wants to kiss me! Hurrah, party! Take out the Champaign, the cake, the confetti, the music…

Above all, keep a neutral face.

- 'Do you prefer the right of the left?' I ask him.

- 'In that case…'

Draco goes away from me straight away.

-'… We're in a hurry.'

I go in the bathroom and slip my uniform on at high speed. I go back to the dormitory, Draco's lying on my bed again.

- 'But what are you doing?' I ask, amazed.

- 'I'm waiting for you to throw yourself into my arms.'

I shouldn't make him wait too long…!

- 'Did you smoke the floor? Or are you completely cracked?' I ask.

-'I'm as delighted as you are at the idea, don't worry', Draco explains, his smile vanishing, 'but you're the only one with whom I could go out.'

- 'Are you that starved?' I ask.

I'd be more than happy to fill this need.

- 'I need a pure-blood girl friend right now', Draco explains. 'My trial is in October and having a girl friend is the best way for me to show that I've become perfectly integrated into the magical community. Pansy was the only other girl with whom it was possible, but if she's able to betray me with a love potion, she can be capable of worse.'

So that is why? For his trial!

- 'Charming story', I state, 'Do I have to remind you the little chat we had yesterday night?'

- 'Don't bother, I've thought about that a lot. In fact all you want is to be able to trust your boyfriend, don't you? You want him to be faithful?

- 'Among other things', I say, surprised.

- 'If that's the only thing, I can promise you that I'll be faithful and for the rest…'

- 'Malfoy…' I warn him, irritated.

- 'Moon, I really need a girlfriend now to be able to argue at my trial that I have a lasting relationship with an adequate girl

Even worse that what I thought.

- 'Find somebody else', I say furiously.

- 'I've already told you, you're the only one, and I'm a good match', Draco says, 'so draw me a list of your conditions.'

I just want you to love me for real!

- 'You don't understand anything', I say, turning round towards the door.

Draco gets up straight away.

- 'What's there to understand?' He asks kindly.

I need you to ask me to go out with you because you really want to.

- 'There's one thing you're not taking into account Malfoy, feelings', I say, 'The only feelings we have towards each other are full of hatred.'

- 'I didn't think you were that romantic', Draco says, sounding surprised. 'We only have to call each other by our first names.'

- 'No, we don't', I say in a furious voice.

- 'Malorie', he states slowly.

OUTCH !!

- 'It doesn't work like this', I say.

- 'Try out', he insists, 'My name's Draco.'

- 'Why are you insisting, don't you understand?' I ask.

- 'If you really want me to like you, we could take a very light love potion', Draco offers.

- 'On the whole, Malfoy…'

- 'Draco', he corrects.

- '… You don't understand anything about girls', I say, 'if you did, you'd know you can't ask a girl out for such a reason.'

- 'You're not all the girls, Moon… I mean, Malorie.'

I look at him with a small sarcastic smile.

- 'What kind of reasons would you want?' Draco asks.

- 'I want the guy to tell me that he likes me', I say, hesitating.

- 'Oh?'

- 'Yes.'

- 'That's the only thing?'

- 'In case you didn't notice, I don't walk around with a crowd of suitors around me, so yes, that would be enough.'

Draco stares at me, looking surprised.

- 'We should go', I say, taking my bag.

I head for the door, Draco quickens his pace to catch up with me. With one hand, he shuts the door I've just half-opened.

- 'Malorie', he says, 'I like you.'

Really?

- 'You're even more desperate that I thought', I state.

I try to reopen the door, but Draco's still blocking it.

- 'Yesterday, you returned my kiss before repelling me', he says.

- 'Surprise, in fact I was insulting you', I say.

Not very convincing, what a clumsy clot!

- 'I'd like to check that', Draco says.

- 'What?' I ask, surprised.

Suddenly, Draco flattens me against the door and places his hands around my waist.

- 'Ready?' He asks. 'Five… Four…'

What do I do now?

- '…Three…'

So, what do I do?

- '…Two…'

You might think it's funny to listen to my thoughts like that, but from the moment when I need you, there's nobody left! And he could be playing a practical joke on me!

- '…One…'

I think I heard one of you talking! Repel him? I have to repel him? OK!

- 'Stop', I say.

Draco looks at me and clenches his teeth.

- 'We're going to be even later', I say.

I repel Draco slowly, open the door and go out, cursing myself.

Who's the idiot who advised me to repel him? If I catch them, they'll be in big trouble.

I hurtle down the stairs and get to the Transfiguration classroom, followed closely by Draco, who doesn't even gibber.

Knock, Knock.

- 'Come in.'

I open the door.

- 'Moon and Malfoy, the class will end in five minutes', Professor Tonks says. 'It's a bit much! Detention for both of you, tonight, Professor Flitwick is in very high need for his classroom to be tidied up before the end of the year. Eight o'clock.'

- 'But…', Draco starts.

- 'I don't want to know, get to your seats', Professor Tonks replies.

Without a word, I head for my seat, Draco on my heels.

- 'Bloody teenage hormones, they can't stop themselves', the teacher grumbles.

The students start sniggering.

Of course! Draco and Malorie, that's impossible according to them… And to me too by the way.

It's been ages that Flitwick has been shouting himself hoarse. I'm not listening to a word, I'm looking at the room around me. There are many bewitched objects spread all over the place, it looks quite dangerous to tidy all this up.

So Draco needs me for his trial, but it doesn't change anything, I'm sure he'll find someone else.

Personally, in four days, I'll be far away from here, far away from Draco, ready to forget him once and for all.

Already the end of the class? Time went by very quickly.

- 'Moon, Malfoy!'

I turn round, here are Ronnie and Hermy. There are a lot of people around us.

-'What do you want, Weasley?' Draco asks. He's standing next to me.

- 'Your detention will take place tonight at eight o'clock in Flitwick's classroom', Hermione starts.

- 'We already know that, Granger', Malfoy replies.

- 'We've been put in charge of keeping a watch on you', Ron states.

- 'Great, two Gryffindor executioners, and the most dangerous classroom of the year!' Draco exclaims.

- 'We're no more delighted than you, Malfoy', Ron says, 'I didn't ask you to get detention.'

Let's hope Hermione won't blunder tonight.

The risk is greater with Ron…

Ron's giving me a strange look, I think he's trying to make me understand something.

Do I have a peace of salad between my teeth?

I turn round and look out of the window. It's Miss Pimpernel, my owl. I open the window and Miss Pimpernel enters, flies across the corridor and crashes into a wall.

I thought those bugs were equipped with radars. Obviously there was an exception and my mother gave it to me. That must be why it was so cheap.

After a hazardous parry of the pigeon, I manage to catch the creature and to snatch its letter. From my mother, as usual!

« My darling little daughter. »

Little daughter what? Mom, you've got a favour to ask me.

« I just received Narcissa Malfoy. This adorable woman…»

Translation: cram full with dosh.

« … confided to me that his charming son Draco will be tried by the Magengamot in October.

As you must already know, Draco Malfoy is a repentant Death Eater, this has been seen in the past. It seems that during a trial, a repentant Death Eater is more likely to avoid going to jail if he can prove that he's well reinstated in the society. That is to say, that he has good prospects, a loving family, friends, contacts, and a girlfriend.

Narcissa had been planning for a while to marry her son to Pansy Parkinson. Yet, it seems that something happened between the two of them, because Draco told his mother Saturday night that he did not trust young Miss Parkinson any more.

Hence, The Malfoy family is faced with a dilemma. Very few noble families would accept a repentant Death Eater to marry their children. And among the few tolerant families, there are some we think better to avoid, and some which have no young girl who could get married.

That's why Narcissa shared with me her wish to see our two families united. The name of Moon is, as you can see, as prestigious as ever. Yet, combined with the one of Malfoy, it would be really… better.

Narcissa implied that Draco had already whispered a word or two to you about this. It seems that you repelled the young man. If my memory is good, you don't really like him.

But, darling, things can change and, despite our blood, the family treasure is in a very bad state. Such a family alliance would allow us to shine again in the business world. I'm already so embarrassed to be forced to ask for a grant to pay your studies.

I perfectly know that your dearest desire is to provide for yourself, but, Malorie, a match as Draco can't be refused, even for a few months' flirt. I saw him and he is quite a good-looking boy. My little chick, think about what's best for your family, and make your choice.

Mona Moon. »

I look up from the letter. Malfoy gives me an arrogant smile, then turns his back on me and leaves.

I'm starting to be on the verge of exploding!

Classes are over, I'm going to be able to write an answer to my mother's letter before going to my detention.

I'm sitting on my bed, trying to write an answer to my mother. I went up to the dormitory to be quiet, but it was forgetting Miss Pimpernel and Pansy.

They're both turkeying hysterically. I'm used to it coming from Pansy, but from an owl, which is supposed to hoot, it's more spectacular.

- 'What a luck you have to be in detention with Draco!' Pansy exclaims.

From your point of view maybe.

- 'It's a pity you're being kept a watch by that tease mudblood.

It's never been that hard to suppress giggles.

Hermione? Tease? Are we talking about the same girl? Pansy… Think before you talk!

- 'Well, I'm going to diner', Pansy states at last. Don't hang around too much, if you've got to be there by eight, or you won't have time to get ready.

There are only three hours before eight, and it's true that Flitwick's classroom is on the other side of the globe.

I reread my letter before sending it.

« Dear Mum,

Your memory of me not liking Draco Malfoy is really beyond the reality of the situation.

I hadn't thought useful to tell you everything, but I and Malfoy Jr heartily hate each other.

If it were another boy, I wouldn't find it too difficult to sacrifice myself for the interest of our family. But I can't be with someone who hates me that much.

I understand how helpful I could be to our family, and I measure the selfishness of my act, but I have to refuse Draco Malfoy's offer of a « flirt ».

I perfectly understand your disappointment, as well as the other Moon's. I can only promise to achieve giving our family the prestige it claims… In a few years from now.

The only reason why I could change my mind would be that Malfoy Jr miraculously liked me for real, and not only because he needs me. Only this could make me forget those years of hatred.

Malorie Moon. »

I think it's perfect.

I only miss Miss Pimpernel now. She's doing her claws on Millicent's pillow. I go up to her with my rolled up letter. She flies away immediately and lands on top of the wardrobe.

-'Haven't anybody told you that you have to deliver the mail?'

Miss Pimpernel gives out a piercing cry.

- 'Well, now you know', I say, 'Get down!'

Here I am, discussing with an owl.

Amazed, I look at Miss Pimpernel who's flying to me. The bird stops on Millicent bedside rug.

Carefully, I tie the letter to her leg.

-'It's for Mona Moon', I say.

The bird spreads its wings violently and pushes me. I fall on the floor harshly. I haven't had the time to look up, that it's already flying in the room.

Miss Pimpernel starts circling the room above me. She's waiting for me to stand up again before going through the window.

I'll never understand that bug, yet… I love her! … Don't ask me why!

I look at the horizon through the window; I can see the dull white feathers of my owl in the setting sun.

It's time to go to diner. Then, detention…


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: Fifth day: The detention.**

A quarter to eight, I'm very early, but I was forced to leave the common room. The usual hysterical girl was determined to convince me to try and reconcile Draco with her.

You can always dream Pansy!

I could go and have a look at the room where Ron and Hermione took Draco and me the day I was contaminated by the sugary feelings of the potion of the hysterical girl.

If I remember the room correctly, it was on the seventh floor, opposite a tapestry depicting dancing trolls.

Yes, I've found it.

Surprisingly, the door's here, it shouldn't. Saturday night, Ron and Hermione marched past it…

I hold out my hand towards the handle and open the door slowly.

Ron's standing in the middle of the room, facing a mirror.

- 'Hermione', He says. 'There's something I've been wanting to tell you for a long time… No, that's not very good.'

I'm dreaming! The scoop of the year…

Ron looks at his reflexion and resumes his speech.

-'Hermione, I'm always thinking about you, during the day, at night, under my shower.'

What??

-'No good either', Ron says, 'she could get the wrong idea.'

Indeed.

- 'Hermione', he says in a voice full of energy. 'Have you never wondered why I was so possessive towards you? … Too aggressive.'

I'll have to help him, he's never going to come through it.

- 'You should just say: « Hermione, I love you »', I say, opening the door.

Ron turns round abruptly.

He seems frightened.

You don't need to, I'm not going to eat you… Well, now I think of it… If you don't make up your mind quickly about Hermione, I'll catch the rabies and I won't answer for me any more.

- 'How… How long have you been there?' He asks.

And you, how long have you been there, you poor little snail?

- 'Since: « something I've been wanting to tell you for a long time … »', I answer.

- 'You… You…', Ron hesitates.

…Are almost inspiring pity…

- 'I won't say a word', I finish his sentence.

Not that I don't want to.

- 'So?' I ask, 'How long have you been aware of your love for Hermione?'

- 'Why « aware »?' Ron asks.

- 'Because in my eyes, you've always be in love with Hermione.'

- 'Really?'

He's surprised! He's surprised! I'm not lying, all the school knows it except him…

- 'So?' I insist.

- 'I don't really know', Ron answers awkwardly. Maybe three or four years, more or less.'

You wouldn't think so, but it's quite sad!

- 'You're going to tell her today?' I ask in a hopeful voice. 'Is that why you're practicing?'

- 'Well…'

Please, tell me it was the first time he was speaking to that mirror!

- 'Ron', I say, 'I'll tell you something, but I forbid you to tell anybody that I told you.'

There we are, I'm going to betray my only friend.

- 'Hermione's in love with you, you can go ahead', I say, 'She won't repel you, she's mad about you.'

- 'You… You're sure?' Ron asks.

That can't be true, he hadn't realized that either.

- 'Certain, go on!'

- 'Well', Ron says, 'In that case I'm going to tell her… soon.'

Soon?!

- 'No', I say, 'You're going to tell her tonight. Because if you don't decide on a deadline, you'll never manage…'

- 'OK', Ron admits, 'I'm going to tell her tonight… Or tomorrow…'

- 'Tonight', I burst out.

- 'OK', Ron repeats, sounding scared. 'To… Tonight.'

You need to rush them a little, those bugs, or they won't do anything.

- 'Very well, and I hope for your sake that tomorrow, Hermione will come and see me, as happy as if the houselves had gained liberty, to tell me that you made your declaration.

Ron hesitates.

I'm not giving you a choice, cousin.

- 'If you want, I can help you and talk to her', I offer.

- 'No', Ron interrupts me, looking at his shoes fixedly.

Not very convincing, I'm going to help you whether you want it or not, cousin!

- 'It's almost eight', I say, 'We're going to be late.'

- 'Yes, the detention', Ron says, waking up.

- 'Go ahead', I say, 'I'll follow you.'

All we need now is for somebody to spot us together, they might think we know each other…

When I arrive to the charms classroom, Ron and Hermione are chatting while Draco's giving them contemptuous looks.

We enter the room without a word.

- 'You should put the bewitched items in the cupboards, the chests, and the drawers which are in that room', Hermione says, pointing out a half-open door.

- 'Be careful, some of those objects are not fully unmagicalized.'

What a nice invented word, especially coming from you Hermione.

Ron holds two leafs to us.

- 'Flitwick's indications about each item's place. They're a little dulled, apparently he's been using the same ones for thirty years.

Dulled? Unreadable!

I manage to spell the writing out and look around me.

At least I know that the cushions are supposed to go in the chests.

- 'We've got to stay with you in case something goes wrong', Hermione states.

She and Ron sit down around a table.

I give Ron an intent look. He hastens to turn his head away.

Draco's already caught a bag full of white feathers. I imitate him and carry a tray on which there's a tea set. I walk into the storeroom and spot the right shelves on which the tea set is supposed to be stored. Draco closes a drawer and looks at me.

- 'Were there good news in your mail?' He asks.

No.

- 'Yes, your plan is going to fail', I say, trying to look self-confident.

- 'I don't think so', Draco answers, 'I think everything will happen as I want it to.'

Actually, I'm not sure I'm going to complain about it… I mean yes! But no… And sometimes yes… Why does everything have to be so confused? I'm dreaming of a quiet life… No, just kidding.

Draco and I have been putting away bewitched objects for one hour.

Draco's been giving me cruel victorious looks for one hour. I've been answering with ironic smiles for one hour.

And Ron's been pedalling in semolina with Hermione for one hour. He's even managed to find a way to quarrel with her about the worst trifles I've ever heard of.  
As a result, Hermione's livid, Ron's sulking, I'm nervous and Draco's slowly but surely getting worked up over my apparently calm behaviour.

- 'What's that thing here?' Draco asks.

I turn round, Draco's pointing out a birdcage.

- 'A cage for the experimentation program of the seventh years', Hermione explains without looking up from her book.

- 'And where do we have to put it?' Draco asks sharply.

- 'You only have to follow Flitwick's instruction', Hermione answers slyly.

- 'If I'm asking you, it's precisely because nothing's written about a bloody birdcage', Draco yells.

Am I the only one to have noticed that the cage is emitting small blue sparks?

My memory's working at top speed.

What did we do to this cage again?

This had something to do with dementors? No, with prisoners? Yes, that's it, we had to find a way to fill the need the ministry had to keep its prisoners without dementors.

We'd tried to make this cage impassable as a scaled-down model of a possible future cell.

The results had been good, maybe even too good. I can remember that Flitwick was very surprised with them, and he'd told us that the curses on the cage were very unstable.

- 'You only have to put it down on the table in the storeroom.'

Draco grabs the cage violently.

- 'Be careful', I burst out, so does Hermione.

Too late.

The blue sparks suddenly light the whole room up. Draco releases the cage brutally as if he'd been burnt. He rubs his hands with an expression of pain on his face.

On the floor, the cage has burst.

- 'Get out!' Hermione yells.

'I turn round to the way out. Ron's ahead of me, he hold out his hand towards the handle.

A bright blue light's blinding me

- 'Moon, wake up!'

I open my eyes slowly.

My Draco…

It's the second time he wakes me up today.

I sit up. Ron and I obviously made a glide across the room. Ron is more shaken than me, Hermione is slapping him lightly, half-crying.

- 'Hermione!' I yell, without paying attention to Draco's surprised look.

- 'You deal with the door, I'll take care of Ron.'

Hermione moves back with difficulty.

- 'Enervatum!' I say, pointing my wand towards Ron.

Nothing happens. I make another attempt with another spell, and another, and another…

In the mean time, Hermione's applying herself to try and demolishing the door… In vain.

- 'Ron, stop it, wake up!' I yell, slapping him.

- 'You… Why do you…?' Draco asks hesitantly, half-frightened.

- 'He's my cousin, you stupid boy, go and help Hermione', I tell him mechanically.

What have I just told Draco?

Draco gets up and, contrary to all expectation, he catches Hermione up and draws his wand.

- 'Hermy…'

Ron!

He's waking up.

- 'She's here', I say, reassured.

Ron opens his eyes. I help him to sit up. He looks behind me, I turn round. Hermione stands rooted on the spot, a tear on her face, she smiles, then she turns back to the door.

- 'Stay here', I say.

I get up and head for Hermione and Draco.

--

Two hours later, we give up.

We're prisoners in the charms classroom, there's no way out.

The only positive thing is that Ron's up and about.

- 'There's nothing else to do than wait for somebody to notice we're missing', Hermione states.

- 'We told Harry and Ginny that the detention would end around ten thirty, they'll notice we're missing very soon', Ron points out.

- 'They will, but I think they'll be delighted about it and won't ask questions', I explain.

- 'Why?' Hermione and Ron ask, sounding surprised.

- 'Even I, I've understood', Draco whispers without looking at the love birds.

Ron and Hermione turn away from each other, looking embarrassed.

In a different situation, this would be hilarious…

- 'I can't believe it', Draco says suddenly.

- 'What?' Ron asks.

- 'You're cousins', Draco says in an alarmed voice. 'And since when don't you call this one Granger any more?'

Draco indicates Hermione with his thumb. Hermione's become very red.

- 'Since I've known her', I say, 'You see, Malfoy, my favourite cousins are the Weasleys, and Hermione's my best friend. You realize I don't meet your expectations.'

If he keeps wanting to « try » with me after that!

- 'Wh… What?' Ron exclaims.

Hermione gives me a surprised look.

I haven't told her the big news yet.

- 'I'll explain later', I tell her.

Draco looks as if he'd got a nasty blow on the head.

- 'And is there something else like this that you're hiding from me?'

Let me see… Things that I'm hiding from you… Oh yes, I'm in love with you.

- 'No', I answer.

Hermione's hiding a little smile.

- 'Wait!' An amazed Ron cries out. 'What did that thing you've just said mean?'

Ron gives me an imploring look.

Oops, poor Ronnie, if I tell him, he won't survive it.

- 'Hermione'll tell you when I've told her', I say.

- 'You're not going to tell her, are you?' Draco cries out.

- 'Of course I am, and her name's Hermione', I say in a neutral voice.

- 'Well, I don't want you to tell her', Draco says.

I give Draco the same cruel look he gave me at the beginning of our detention.

- 'She's my best friend', I say, 'I tell her everything.'

- 'Or I guess after a few years', Hermione corrects me with a wide smile.

I give Hermione an intent look.

- 'What did you guess?' Ron asks Hermione.

- 'Some things… One thing mainly', Hermione says.

- 'if you make that thing known, I'll do the same for yours…' I say.

- 'I landed in another world', Draco says, sounding exasperated.

Yep, this is the fourth dimension.

- 'So, what do we do?' Ron asks.

- 'I think we've tried everything, we only have to wait now', Hermione states.

After a few minutes of silence.

- 'Who's going to notice you're missing, Malorie?' Hermione asks.

- 'Nobody, I often get to bed after Millicent and Pansy, they'll freak out tomorrow morning', I say.

- 'And what about you, Malfoy?' Hermione asks.

- 'If Crabbe and Goyle haven't eaten too much, they won't fell asleep too quickly and they may notice I'm missing', Draco explains. 'Since I've joined the Order of the Phoenix, I try to avoid wandering with them too much, their fathers are in Azkaban. Zabini will be glad I'm missing, and Nott will think his father might have managed to catch me… So, nothing's certain.'

- 'We might stay there a while', Hermione concludes.

Won-der-ful.

--

One hour later.

Even now, Draco finds ways to be elegant…

--

Another hour later.

Logically, as soon as we're out, we both get to our common room… alone… in the castle's empty corridors.

--

One more hour later.

Eventually, he doesn't seem to be that angry at me for being related to Ron and friend with Hermione.

And another hour later.

- 'Now, what do we do?' Draco asks after long, long silences.

- 'What do you want to do?' Ron asks.

-'I've got a small idea with you're cousin, but she doesn't want too', Draco says in a nasty voice.

- 'Disgusting!' Ron exclaims.

What kind of idea?

- 'Indeed', I tell Ron.

Hermione gives me a funny look, and hides a smile.

- 'What do the muggles do when they're stuck in some place?' Draco asks.

- 'Hermione's not a muggle', I say.

- 'I'm certainly not going to get used to that', Draco says, irritated.

- 'I'm not asking you to', I say.

- 'Don't worry, I'll manage, as long as you're acting as usual and pretending to despise her', Draco states.

- 'But I thought you two hated each other', Ron says, his look going from Malfoy to me.

- 'We do', I say.

- 'Then why does he… he… You know what I mean', Ron tells me.

- 'It's for his trial', I say.

- 'Hold on!' Draco cries out furiously.

- 'If you didn't want me to tell it, you shouldn't have told me', I say in an irritated voice.

- 'Let's change the subject. So, Gran… Hermione, what do muggles do?'

Ron and Hermione jump.

- 'It frightened me too, when he called me by my first name this morning', I tell Ron and Hermione.

Hermione smiles.

She must suspect I was far from disgusted.

- 'Well', Hermione says. 'In this kind of situation, Muggles sometimes play a game that's called « Truth or Dare ».

Oh! She's told me about that game.

- 'Can you explain it?' Draco asks kindly.

- 'Well', Hermione starts. 'One of the players asks another to choose between Truth and Dare. If they choose Truth, they have to answer a question without lying. If they choose Dare, they have to take up some kind of very short challenge.'

- 'We won't play that game', I say.

- 'You're scared, Moon?' Draco asks, his arrogant voice back.

- 'No, but I really don't want to play this game with you', I say.

And I've a few embarrassing truth, above all.

- 'You're afraid of me, then', Draco sums up.

- 'No', I say.

- 'In that case, you shouldn't be afraid to play. There's a bottle of Veritaserum in the storeroom for the « Truth »', Draco says. 'Prove to me that you're not scared.'

- 'Very well', I say, 'Bring your bottle.'

I should learn how to think before speaking!

- 'Well… I don't really want to play', Ron starts.

- 'You don't have a choice', I answer coldly.

- 'And…' Hermione starts.

- 'I forbid you to drop me', I tell Hermione without looking at her.

- 'Fine', Hermione says against her will, 'We'll do what you've decided in fact.'

- 'Exactly', Draco says, sitting down again, with the bottle.

He stares at me without blinking.

- 'Who starts?' He asks.

- 'You do', I say abruptly, 'Truth or Dare?'

Draco freezes, surprised.

I raise my eyebrows, as a sign of victory.

- 'Dare', Draco says.

Kiss me!

I turn to Hermione and Ron.

- 'Any idea?' I ask.

--

I thought this was a funny game.

Here, we're as bored as dead rats, Hermione and Ron only take Truths because they suspect what I would ask them to do, and I don't dare forcing them to confess their feelings, that's the kind of thing they have to do with only the both of them, not in a game where Draco's having fun asking Ron and Hermione to tell him about their worst humiliations…

Draco and I only take Dares, Hermione doesn't dare asking us to kiss each other, yet I can see her hesitating… After a while she won't hesitate any more.

- 'We should change a little, this is monotonous', Ron says.

- 'It's your fault, you're only taking Truths', Draco reproaches.

- 'So what, you and Malorie are only taking Dares', Ron states.

I've a bad feeling, Draco shut up!

- 'Precisely because you two are only taking Truths, somebody has to fill your lack of courage', Draco explains.

- 'Stop talking nonsense', Ron says.

- 'In that case, you should take Dares, Granger and you', Draco suggests nastily.

- 'You and Malorie only have to take Truths', Ron fumes.

- 'OK', Draco says.

- 'Fine', Ron says.

- 'And when where you planning to ask me for my opinion?' I ask Draco.

- 'Same question for you!' Hermione cries out to Ron.

- 'Weasley!' Draco carries on. 'Truth or Dare?'

- 'Dare', Ron answers straight away.

- 'Huh-huh', I say, 'Malfoy, if you don't find anything, I've something to suggest.'

Ron and Hermione give me scared looks.

- 'I've found', Draco simply says.

Ron and Hermione seem reassured straight away, and I'm disappointed.

- 'Weasley, kiss Granger', orders Draco.

-'Huh-huh', I say, delighted.

Ron and Hermione get their scared looks back.

- 'Go on', Malfoy encourages them with an adorable smile.

A smile that, surprisingly, has nothing sarcastic in it.

- 'Go on', I encourage them too.

For the first time, I'm beaming at Draco's side.

Ron turns towards Hermione hesitantly.

- 'You're making it last longer', Draco remarks.

I just love this guy!

Ron gives Draco a disgusted look. He speeds the movement up.

Beware, impact in five… Four… Three... Two… One… YES!!

At last, the world can collapse tomorrow, that's done, they've kissed each other.

They move away from each other slowly.

If only they could see their faces right now!

- 'Malorie!' Ron says, 'Truth or Dare?'

No way, I'm not going to choose Truth.

- 'Dare', I say.

- 'You were supposed to choose Truth', Hermione reminds me.

- 'No', I say. 'Malfoy and Ron made their powerful male deal, I didn't.'

- 'Anyway, it suits me', Ron says. 'Malorie, you're going to hate me, but you shouldn't have laughed… Cousin… Kiss Malfoy.'

What?

- 'Huh-huh', Hermione says, giving me look of complicity.

- 'This is an excellent idea', Draco says.

I stay rooted on the spot for a few seconds.

- 'Scared stiff, Moon?' Draco asks.

No, I'm savouring.

- 'Of course not', I say, 'Look at me.'

Draco turns toward me docilely. I move closer, self-confidently.

HEAVEN!

One second, two seconds, three, four, five… I'm going to have to let him go.

OK, I move back from him.

No!!

Draco's smiling at me.

- 'That's it?' He asks.

Don't move, we're going to do it again.

Suddenly, the door's bolt jingles. We get up all of a sudden and move away from each others.

- 'I suggest that none of us ever tell anybody what happened', I say.

- 'OK', Draco says.

- 'Yes', Ron and Hermione say.

The door opens. Potter and Flitwick are standing in the doorway.

Saint Potter, I've never been able to stand him, he had to spoil one of the best moments of my life.

Both of them get in the room, behind them I can see Pansy who rushes at Draco.

- 'Well', Flitwick says, 'I knew the spells that had been cast on that cage were powerful, but this time, my students must have broken a record.'

- 'Stuck with Slytherins', Potter whispers to his friends. 'You're lucky you're still alive.'

As Hermione says: 'Better being prejudiced against Slytherins than against muggleborns.'


	7. Chapter 7

**Bonne lecture. **

**Chapter 7: Sixth day: The interview. **

I'm up! It's only eight in the morning and I'm up! This is a miracle. Merlin must have cast me a spell during my sleep. Well, of course I'm the last of the dormitory to go down to the great hall, but still, I'm up!

--

In the great hall, there's a room left at Millicent's side. As a good queen of the hypocrites, I have to go and sit down there.

- 'Already up? The mail hasn't even arrived yet', Millicent remarks.

- 'I'm changing my habits', I say.

- 'In my opinion, If you're already up, It's because you're getting stressed out about the examiners who're coming to interview you today', Millicent explains.

That's a detail.

I look at Millicent with a guilty smile.

A detail that's completely freaking me out. If my anguish keeps raising this way, I'll soon pee on myself.

Don't think about that… Don't think about that…

Suddenly I hear a racket of squawks and wing rustling.

The mail.

Look, Miss Pimpernel's washed herself? No, it's not her, it's a Gryffindor owl, the slashed one's I believe…

SPLAF!

THAT! That's Miss Pimpernel!

Fallen flat on her face, her wings wide open, I can see a piece of parchment tied to my shameful chicken.

I untie the parchment and hold my glass out to Miss Pimpernel, who seems to have strained a wing.

- 'You'll have to stay in the owlery for a while', I tell her.

Ignoring me superbly, the owl tries to put her feathers back in place.

I open my mail.

Malorie,  
I send you a small message of encouragement on behalf of myself and of all the family. Do your best and… impress them.  
Good luck.

Mona Moon.

« all the family »? I'd be surprised, they don't want me to study… And strangely enough, this encourages me to study even more. I must do that just to be awkward… isn't that surprising?

My mother didn't write a word about the last letter I sent her… Yet she must have received it…

- 'RRRRIIIIIiiii'

AAAHhhh, FU S.

- 'Miss Pim…' I start to yell.

I stop when I realize that the bird which cried is not my owl but another one, almost identical, but more immaculate, which has come to keep her company. I recognize the other owl, it's Potter's. There're only two snowy owls at Hogwarts.

They're billing and cooing!! It can't be true, event the birds are getting down to it.

- 'Hey, no', I tell my owl. 'It's a Gryffindor.'

- 'Is this Harry Potter's owl?' Millicent asks.

Really? Did you notice too?

- 'Yes', I answer, 'Miss Pimpernel, come here, there are plenty of other males at Hogwarts.'

- 'It's a female', a cold voice cuts me short.

I look up. At that very moment, I notice several whispers going round towards this end of the table.

- 'Your owl is the male', Potter insists.

- 'If she's called Miss Pimpernel, that's precisely because she's a lady', I reply sharply to the intruder.

- 'Check', Potter orders me. 'Hedwig!'

Potter stretches out his arm stupidly, but his owl refuses to obey him.

- 'How authoritative', I notice.

Around me, small sniggers ring out. Potter moves closer to his owl.

- 'Hedwig, come', He says, 'They're snakes here, they bite.'

- 'Indeed, and guess what, yesterday I bit a hippogriff', I say, in a silly voice. 'I haven't understood how I managed it yet. It must be because of my snake impulses…'

New and noisier sniggers ring out.

I love it, I understand why Draco's always teasing the Gryffindors.

- 'Spit out your venom somewhere else', Potter replies furiously.

He's insisting, isn't he?

- 'This is another problem, but the worse is the sloughing. I swear, sometimes our common room is filled with old pieces of skin. The first years play hide-and-seek in it, this year we almost lost one…'

The Slytherin table roars with laughter at Potter's dim-witted face.

- 'Hilarious', Potter replies.

- 'Seems so', I answer with a wide smile on my face.

Potter can't bear it any more, he grabs his owl and tries to take it with him.

The owl's defending itself, it bites, scratches and, of course: flies away.

It lands right next to my arm, which is firmly holding Miss Pimpernel.

I resist the temptation to kick the bird. I hold my nerves, I haven't moved an inch. She, or rather He, doesn't attack me, whereas he has completely slashed Potter's arms and hands.

This bug is clever.

- 'What are you doing here, Potter?'

My Draco!

- 'I've only come to get my owl back', Potter answers firmly.

- 'And to bother a Slytherin', Draco adds.

Am I the Slytherin he's talking about?

- 'I'm not bothering her, it's her owl that's bothering mine', Potter replies.

- 'As far as I can see, your bird and you are taking root at the Slytherin table, and you're bothering Moon', Draco explains.

Well…

- 'What are you doing here?' I ask Draco.

He turns round to face me.

- 'Well, I'm…' Draco hesitates. 'I'm faithful to the Slytherins… And as you're also a Slytherin… I'm helping you against…'

- 'I don't need your help Malfoy', I say, 'This is humiliating.'

- 'It's humiliating to be helped?' Draco asks, stunned.

- 'No, your help is humiliating', I correct him.

Sorry Draco, I'm crossed with myself for telling you such a stupid thin.

- 'You're completely crazy', Draco says slowly.

That was bound to happen!

- 'Well, will you get your starved male back or not?' I hurl at Potter.

- 'She's not a male', Potter replies.

I can see Ron and Hermione moving closer to us.

- 'How can you be so sure?' I ask in a caustic voice.

- 'Because the saleswoman in Diagon Alley guaranteed me so', Potter explains, 'You?'

As for me, my fake pigeon comes from a shabby shop in Knockturn Alley…

- 'Same.'

-'Maybe they're both females', Hermione explains, moving closer.

- 'No way, they were snogging', Potter explains.

- 'They still could be both females', Hermione explains.

Potter gives his owl a suspicious look.

Don't worry Potter, those things happen.

- 'Granger', I say, 'Would you volunteer to check if one of our owls is a male?'

- 'Why me?' Hermione asks, sounding alarmed.

- 'Because you managed to scare Potter stiff', I explain.

The beginning of classes' ringing rings out.

- 'Well', I tell Miss Pimpernel. 'You fly to the owlery and stay there, I'll have a look at your wing tonight.'

I release the bird which flies away after a few seconds, followed by Potter's transsexual one.

- 'Hedwig!' He calls in an authoritarian voice.

- 'She's grown-up now, let her live her life', I say in a fake clumsy voice. 'Let her make her own sentimental choices, even if they're not very conventional.'

I can see Hermione suppressing a smile. Ron, on the other hand, gives me a furious look and drags Potter towards the exit.

Once they're far enough, Potter starts telling Ron off.

Poor Ron, it's not easy to be my cousin.

I let Millicent and Pansy leave without me purposely.

It seems I'm not the only one who had this idea, Draco catches up with me the second I stand up.

He walks at my side, without a word. The remaining Slytherins stare at us, looking amazed.

- 'What do you want, Malfoy?' I ask before we become too suspicious.

- 'I wanted to congratulate you', Draco replies.

- 'On what?' I ask.

- On having made Potter shut his face. Few people can be proud of having done that, and, just has me, you're now one of them', Draco explains.

-'You've never managed to make him shut his face', I say. 'Looks like you got fixated on him… Do you find him attractive?'

It seems that my owl's love affair's inspiring me.

I've told that loud enough for all the Slytherin around us to hear.

My Draco's going to need a strong defence, or he could be stuck with this for a while.

Draco burst out laughing.

- 'Moon, you're in a very good position to know my tastes', he comes out with.

Is he aware that there are at least twenty people listening?

- 'Not really', I answer.

- 'Yes you do… You look like a boy and I'm not attracted to you. So it must be that I'm really attracted to nice feminine girls', Draco states.

OUTCH !

- 'Splendid!' I answer, 'By always seeing you with me, I was starting to panic. I must confess that until now, I was precisely hanging on to your slightly feminine look to reassure me.

Since we're talking, students around us are gathering and they're giving each others amused looks.

-'What's happening here?'

Professor Tonks… And to think that we were only starting to warm up.

- 'Nothing', Draco and I answer in chorus.

- 'In that case, make off to your classes, or you're going to be late for the second time this week', Professor Tonks foretells harshly.

I turn round towards the corridor and start to walk without a look at Draco. All the other students around us are making off too.

- 'What an actress', Draco whispers.

- 'Why are you saying that?' I answer.

- 'It's about your stupid cousin and your surprising friend', Draco says. 'You know, I've been thinking…'

- 'Really?' I say in fake disbelief.

Draco smiles and carries on.

I'm cracking up, he's so beautiful when he's smiling to me!

- 'If you're able to hide your perfect harmony with those two Gryffindors, it means that you must be able to hide many more things.'

I'm aware of that, thank you!

- 'And what are you thinking about?' I ask in a weary voice. 'No, wait, I don't want to know.'

- 'As you like', Draco answers.

We reach the last corridor. All the students are waiting to enter the classroom right after the next turn.

Draco holds me back by my arm.

- 'You know Malorie, I'm an excellent actor too, you've just had a proof of it.'

He called me Malorie! He called me Malorie! HURRAY.

- 'Don't call me Malorie', I tell him in a cold voice.

- 'Isn't it your name?' Draco replies.

- 'And I'm not calling you by your first name, am I?' I say.

- 'I wish you would', Draco says with a nervous smile on his face.

- 'You're right', I say, 'You're an excellent actor, you almost managed to make me believe all your nonsense.'

I take my arm out of Draco's grip and move forward to the classroom. The other students are starting to get in, I join the queue, Draco's not behind me.

He enters the room only once everybody's sat down, just before Professor Flitwick had closed the door.

- 'Right on time', Professor Flitwick tells him with a lenient smile on his face.

Beginning of the afternoon, after lunch, students are going away in different directions depending on their classes. I've got to go to the fourth floor for my interview.

I've got plenty of time to go back to my dormitory, have a shower and, above all, try and put a stop to this bloody shaking.

It's going to be fine, I only have to breathe… breathe… The interview will start in ten minute, I'm in front of the door, but it's going to be fine.

OF COURSE NOT, it can't be fine, I don't even know what they're going to say to me… Oh my god, what if they want to talk about my school report? What am I thinking about, obviously they'll want to talk about my school report!

--

Five minutes later, I run back from the bathroom.

And now, my stomach's empty!

It's going to be fine… My future's going to be at stake during the next half hour, but it's going to be fine…

- 'Malorie Moon?'

I'm fainting.

- 'Yes, it's me', I say.

-'You're second, come in', a man with a huge nose tells me.

Second? Who else has been interviewed?

- I'm Mr Legendre and here is Mrs Mansseau', huge-nose states.

- 'Good afternoon', I say to the enormous woman sitting in an armchair.

Mrs Mansseau doesn't answer, she stares at me, I smile politely and move forward when Mr Legendre beckons to me to sit down in front of Mrs Mansseau.

You can see she's a mean sod just by looking at her face… She looks like my grandmother.

Mr Legendre sits down on a chair next to Mrs Mansseau.

- 'Well, then, Miss Moon', Mr Legendre begins. 'Explain to us in a few words why you want to get into the highest teaching program of the International Magical Cooperation, the HLS, High Linguistic Studies?'

To run away from my family, to earn a lot of money, to be far from Draco, to do a round-the-world trip…

- 'I have a passion for languages and for the world's cultures. With the HLS, I'm sure I'm going to learn and to enrich in a school framework as well as in a more personal way', I say.

Can you believe how much nonsense I'm able to utter… At least I manage to repeat what I'd planned to tell.

Mr Legendre seems delighted with my answer. Mansseau, on the other hand, is not saying a word, she keeps looking at me with her gloomy eyes.

- 'I'd like to hear quickly about your social and familial situation', Mr Legendre asks with a nice smile on his face.

My familial situation is built on a lie, my only true friends are the one I have to hate in public…

- 'My family only counts wizards on several generations, I really get on with my mother. My grandparents love me and they agree with each of my choices. Unfortunately I never knew my father. On the whole, we're a very close-knit family.

I've just broken a record!

- 'At Hogwarts I'm mainly friend with students of my own house, Slytherin. I'm very close to my roommates. We're three really good friends.'

Apparently it's always possible to break your own record!

Legendre smiles, Mansseau stares at me.

- 'Well, now let's talk about your years at Hogwarts', Mr Legendre states, opening my school report.

That's how ambitions collapse, I'll have to study something else in London, and to stay at my mother's…

- 'The first three years passed without a hitch', Mr Legendre starts, 'Despite your being late at some morning classes…'

I always had a very deep sleep.

- 'From the middle of your fourth year, it goes bad', Mr Legendre comments on, frowning. 'I can see you got detention for diving in the lake in December…'

I had to bring back a picture of the giant squid. This night, in return, Draco had to put up a banner on top of the astronomy tower, which read that Gryffindors were cheats. We were both caught. On the other hand, we had a good laugh in the common room… Later I'd felt less like laughing, with the pneumonia I'd got.

- 'Then I can read that you gave life to several armours in the castle, and that they chased a poltergeist named Peeves for hours in the whole castle.'

Draco had told me I sucked in charms, I wanted to prove him otherwise. Well, initially I only wanted one armour to cross Peeves, and once. Instead of that, there were at least thirty armours which turned up to chase him. This might have had something to do with Peeves having sung hymns of his own inside them. At any rate, everyone was impressed… Even myself.

- '…You released beasts called blast-ended skrewts, in a school corridor…'

I deserve credit for this, because you wouldn't think it, but those things almost killed me… Well, in the end, Draco and I had to kill them, because it was them or us…

- '… You fetched alcohol outside the school several times, you've been caught smoking muggle inventions, you wandered on the castle roof in your underwear…'

I was lucky, Draco had to do in the grounds. The year after that, we did it again, naked, and we weren't caught that time… As well as many other times.

- 'And this goes on the following years. Moreover, you've been often suspected, without being accused for want of proofs. For example, you were suspected last year to have lit several fireworks inside the castle...

Fred and George had left me a small present, I couldn't spoil it, and it really annoyed Draco.

- 'What do you have to say about this?' Legendre asks.

The moment of truth.

- 'I made many stupid things, these were child mistakes. This year, I've grown up, and I did nothing reprehensible, save being late at a few classes', I explain.

- 'It's true that your seventh year was very quiet compared to the previous ones, you even earned your house an extra hundred and twenty points by yourself…'

I did it only to hear you say it.

- 'Everyone makes mistakes', Mr Legendre concludes, allowing himself a smile of complicity. 'I'm done, Mrs Mansseau?'

Mansseau slightly moves her head towards her colleague, then moves it back to me.

- 'Punctuality', she grumbles. 'You're always late.'

Not always, only one day in two…

- 'I've got a very deep sleep', I defend myself.

- 'Can't your roommates wake you up?' Mansseau asks.

- 'They do, when it's really getting late…'

Millicent is the one who wakes me up, and I don't listen to her often… Well, considering that it's Millicent, that's not surprising.'

Mansseau grumbles.

Mr Legendre stares at me, looking embarrassed.

- 'In fact, with the jetlag, students are often late or tired in class', Mr Legendre explains. 'So, it doesn't really matter…'

Long seconds go by silently.

- 'Well… quickly…' Mr Legendre resumes. 'Who will be funding your studies?'

Nobody.

- 'Mainly my family. They're going to provide for me until I get a job', I answer

In fact, I've got a grant with which I'm going to pay for my studies, but you don't need to know that since it's an external grant.

- 'What are your general fields of interest?' Mr Legendre asks.

Torture myself, be a hypocrite, humiliate myself…

- 'I'm crazy about literature and history', I say. 'And I'm keeping myself up-to-date on recent progresses in transfiguration and charms.'

- 'A boyfriend?' Mr Legendre asks shyly.

Why are you asking? Everybody knows he doesn't love me.

- 'No', I answer.

- 'That will be all', Mr Legendre states. 'You can leave through this door, you will know whether you're taking on board of the train in a few days.'

- 'Thank you', I say in a polite voice, 'Have a nice day.'

I go out slowly, I've got the feeling that the Mansseau's eyes are following me despite the fact that her head isn't moving.'

I shut the door. I take one step, two steps, I stop, breath, and run towards the common room. I pass the last detour to the dungeon, and stop.

Draco's here, in front of me, talking animatedly.

He's talking with… with Mona Moon… My mother.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: Sixth day: ConversationS.**

I go up to them slowly.

That can't be true, I must be having a nightmare!

Mona and Draco burst out laughing.

It makes my blood run cold to see my mother and Draco in such good terms.

Suddenly, Mona turns her head towards me.

- 'Malorie', she yells, hiding her laugh.

Draco turns towards me and a half-smile appears on his lips.

- 'Mona?' I ask, 'What are you doing here?'

A small detail: I only call my mother mum when we're alone. In public, I call her Mona. We need to keep certain appearances… Always appearances…

- 'I came to support you', Mona answers. 'The headmistress authorized me to come to Hogwarts on this occasion.'

I don't think that's why you came, mom.

- 'My interview's over', I say distrustfully.

- 'Did it went well?' Draco asks with a large smile on his face, and rising imperceptibly his eyebrows in a mocking way.

Smile to me again!

- 'Very well', I answer without a look at Draco.

- 'Your friend Draco was telling me about the little experience you had yesterday night during your detention', Mona states, her face radiant.

Hum? What? He didn't dare tell her that, did he!

- 'What…' I start, hiding my anxiety.

- 'Yes', Draco cuts me short, 'We ended up stuck in the charms classroom with Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley.'

I quickly glance at Draco, frowning.

Phew.

- 'I told your mother that those circumstances that night made me…'

Draco gets his breath back slowly.

NOOOO!!

- … 'learn that the Weasleys are your cousins and Hermione Granger is your friend.'

Draco displays a forged sorry face.

He's abject, he slowed his speech down purposely to frighten me.

- 'I also told your mother', Draco goes on, 'that this didn't change anything to my… attachment to you.'

It changes nothing? Really nothing? He still wants…!

- 'Whatever next', I say disdainfully.

- 'Malorie!' Mona cries out indignantly, 'Draco's a charming boy and you're acting atrociously.'

Draco wears a slightly crestfallen face, but I can see a glimmer of fun in his eyes.'

What an actor.

- 'I'm sorry Mona', I say, 'but it's true, Draco and I never got on with each other, I think I've already told you about that…'

- 'But…' Mona starts, sounding almost furious.

- 'She's right', Draco cuts her short in a forged sad voice. 'You're daughter doesn't like me, Mrs Moon. I'm here, courting her stupidly, hoping for her to notice me…'

It's beautiful what you're saying Draco, don't stop…

- '… I must confess that I'm sometimes going about it the wrong way. I'd have loved to have you as a mother-in-law, Mrs Moon', Draco goes on in a melodramatic voice.

Don't be too fast please…

- 'But…' Draco carries on. 'Malorie's free to choose who to spend time with. Yet, as I've already told you a few minutes ago, if one day your daughter and I come to build more than friendship, I'll do anything to make Malorie happy.'

… Now I'm… I don't know what to say… except… Why does it all have to be false!!

- 'I've got to go back to my lessons', Draco states in a sullen voice. 'I only came to pick up some books. Mrs Moon, I was delighted to see you again and I hope our next meeting will come faster than this one did… Malorie, see you later, in the common room.'

Knowing myself as I do, I bet I'll precisely do everything to avoid the common room.

Mona and Draco give each other the same polite and embarrassed smile.

Right before going away, Draco gives me discreetly a winner look.

Here it is, he was bluffing… Ok, I knew it form the start, but you can always hope…

- 'What an actor', Mona whispers.

- 'You… You noticed his smooth talk was all patter?' I ask, surprised.

- 'Of course… It was really too much', Mona explains simply.

Phew, my mother's not completely stupid.

- 'Nevertheless, darling…' Mona starts awkwardly.

Darling? This is the password to « tricky argument ».

- '… Even if it's only until his trial, your going out with Draco Malfoy could be extremely useful to us', Mona states.

- 'You came to Hogwarts to tell me that?' I ask.

- 'Well… Yes', Mona confesses. Yesterday after you letter, I decided I'd better come and tell you what had happened during the last hours… Narcissa Malfoy informed your grandfather of the situation and of course he told your uncles… The three of them now see in you a good way to give the Moons new opportunities.'

- 'She told them? The little… bitch', I say, enraged.

Mona smiles indulgently.

- 'The Malfoy, darling, might be our last chance…' Mona explains slowly.

- 'Mom, I do understand', I say in a weary voice, 'but we're talking about Draco Malfoy…'

- 'Discuss your terms with him', Mona suggests. 'He seems really determined… And his mother's willing to help him.'

The much-touted terms, Draco told me the same thing…

- 'Mom…' I beg.

- 'Malorie, please, make an effort', Mona implores me.

Here she is, looking at me with her imploring face.

- 'Mom…' I repeat.

- 'Please…'

- 'OK', I say, defeated. 'I'll see what I can do, but I don't promise anything.'

But when I say anything, it's really any, any, anything.

- 'Thanks, that's all I was asking for', Mona confesses. 'So, apart from that, how was your interview?'

- 'No idea', I say. 'I think I've put one of the examiners in by bag, but as for the other one, I think she doesn't like me at all.'

- 'What's her name?' Mona asks sounding interested.

- 'Mansseau', I answer.

- 'Yes, I know her', Mona comments. 'A real mean sod, she was a rival and a friend of your grandmother's.'

Strangely enough, I'm not surprised.

- 'I'll have to leave now that your interview is over', Mona states. 'Don't forget to consider seriously going out with Malfoy Junior.'

Mom… !

- 'I'll try', I say.

- 'I'm going to check my mail and wait for news about you', Mona states.

- 'See you soon, mom', I say.

Mona kisses me on my forehead.

She's been doing that ever since I've learned how to walk. She must be keeping doing it because I can still walk…

She goes away.

Here it is, as a result, I feel this small pang again, I fell it every year on platform nine and three quarters at the beginning of the school year.

I enter the common room and head for the girl's dormitory.

Once in my dormitory, I collapse onto my bed and fall asleep. I've got sleep to make up for, since I woke up on time this morning.

--

Half past eight, I've just got through my homework and my late homework. I've done them in my dormitory: I didn't dare going down to the common room at the risk of bumping into Draco.

--

Watch out, this is Mission: Impossible IV: Your mission, should you decide to accept it is to cross the common room as discreetly as possible to reach the exit… All of it avoiding carefully Draco.

I open the door of the girl's dormitory, the usual end-of-the-year atmosphere reigns.

In other words, nobody's working, everybody's just blackening parchments.

There's a beaming fifth year perched on the crystal chandelier, two sixth years are dancing bare-chested on tables.

In short, the usual end-of-the-year atmosphere. Ron was sick when I told him that. He admitted himself that at least the Slytherins didn't need to win a quidditch match to celebrate.

At the same time, we're lucky we don't rely on winning at quidditch, because whatever the other students might say, the Slytherin's team is poor. When we happen to win a match, it's because our players and the supporters have frightened the opponent team.

Draco doesn't see me, he's turning his back to me.

OK, I belt along.

I move forward fast, staring at the way out.

- 'Malorie!' Pansy calls.

Oh, S.

I turn round. Pansy and Millicent are sitting at a table, in front of a huge pile of magazines.

- 'Can you help us?' Millicent asks, pointing at the magazines. We're looking for a way of making Draco fall in love with Pansy again.'

Because he already did once?

- 'I'm sorry girls', I say. 'Miss Pimpernel's hurt, I'm going to pop over the owlery to check on her.'

- 'Oh yes', Pansy giggles. 'It was hilarious the way you made potter shut his face this morning. Even Draco admitted it…'

- 'I'll come and help you after that, I don't think it will take long', I say.

On the contrary, I have an inkling that it's going to take me very, very long, in fact, at least until you're in bed.

- 'OK, see you later then', Millicent says.

I cast a little circular glance around me. Draco's seen me, he's looking at me.

I stay rooted on the spot, we look at each other.

Turn round, turn your eyes away right now Malorie… !

At last I turn my head away. So does Draco.

I head for the door. As soon as I've made sure that the corridors are empty, I start running to put as much distance as I can between Draco and I.

I can hear footsteps, I slow down.

- 'Hermione!' I cry out, recognizing the Gryffindor's thick mop of hair.

- 'Malorie, I'm in luck', Hermione states, beaming.

What? She's going to tell me that Ron declared his love for her!!

- 'You've got things to tell me', Hermione carries on. 'Draco courted you pretty nicely yesterday night.'

That was too beautiful to be possible.

- 'This isn't funny', I say.

- 'Wait, it was hilarious, he's chasing you out of interest, you're forcing yourself to push him back, Ron was more frightened that ever, and to cap it all, you kissed Draco pretending to be disgusted. I must have cracked two or three ribs by suppressing my giggles.'

Traitor!

- 'It's having kissed Ron that makes you so happy?' I ask.

Hermione's smile disappears straight away.

- 'Coming from you Malorie, this is very low. You could have avoided encouraging Malfoy', Hermione explains gloomily.

Of course not, this was one of the most pleasant moments of my week…

-'Why?' I ask, beaming. 'You only had to push Ron back, this was his challenge, not yours.'

Hermione's face suddenly becomes pale.

- 'Oh!' She says in a dreadful voice.

You gave yourself away.

- Hum, hum…

- 'You… You…', Hermione starts, trying to hide her embarrassment.

- 'Don't worry Hermy', I say, 'Ron will never realize you're mad about him. Somebody should tell him so that he realizes it.'

In that case, me.

- 'What are you doing around the dungeons?' I ask. 'It's not very cautious, especially for a Gryffindor.'

- 'It's for the Gryffindor prefects to patrol after the curfew tonight', Hermione explains.

- 'And Ron, where's he patrolling?' I ask.

I need to take it out on somebody, and fortunately, I have a small thing to reproach him.

- 'Between the transfiguration classroom and the charms one', Hermione states. 'But let's get back to the red-hot matter, does Malfoy want to go out with you?'

Please.

- 'He doesn't really want to, it's only for his trial. He wants to prove that he's well integrated in the wizard community. So he needs prospects, a loving family, friends…'

- '…And a girlfriend', Hermione completes, smiling. 'But why you?'

To torture me.

- 'Let me remind you that he's pure-blood and noble, so he needs a girl who's worthy of this rank', I explain. 'There's not a very wide choice, especially since most of the family won't want a former Death Eater who betrayed the Dark Lord for their daughters.'

Except mine.

- 'And you're the only one?' Hermione asks, sounding amazed.

- 'I was only second in the list', I say. 'Pansy was first.'

- 'I assume Malfoy didn't really liked the love potion thing', Hermione says in a serious voice.

- 'Not really', I admit.

Here it is, Hermione's pitying me.

- 'Is it highly possible that he wants to… break up after his trial?' Hermione asks.

You guessed that on your own, didn't you?

I simply nod in agreement.

- 'How was your interview?' Hermione asks, putting a concerned face on.

Thank you for changing the subject.

- 'Well, I don't really know, we'll see', I say. 'I'll have the results on Thursday.'

- 'Aren't you too stressed out about it?' Hermione asks.

- 'In fact, I sort of gave it a miss', I confide, 'Since my mother's visit this afternoon.'

- 'Mona came to Hogwarts?' Hermione asks, sounding surprised.

Is there a single person on earth who doesn't know my mother?

- 'Yes.'

- 'Not for your interview?' Hermione asks sceptically.

- 'Officially yes.'

- 'And unofficially?' Hermione asks.

Should I tell her?

- 'To… To…' I hesitate. 'To marry me off with Malfoy.'

- 'Oh', Hermione states slowly. 'This story is certainly having many new developments.'

Yeah, I could do without them.

- 'And the worse thing is that Malfoy knows about this, he talked with my mother, and Narcissa Malfoy informed my grandfather that she would love to see her cherished son ending up with me', I explain.

Here, now that we've started, let's pour everything out.

Hermione looks at me without a word for a few seconds.

- 'This is a golden opportunity', she concludes.

- 'What do you mean?' I ask, almost sharply.

I don't see any golden opportunity there.

- 'You've got a cast-iron excuse for going out with Malfoy', Hermione explains.

- 'I don't intend to go out with him', I say. 'This could… hurt me.'

Hermione looks surprised at my sincerity.

For once I'm straightforward.

- 'You know Malorie, sometimes you need to take risks', Hermione explains. 'Take the plunge, enjoy, and you can pretend you're only going out with him to obey your family, you leave yourself a way out.'

- 'Because you've taken the plunge, haven't you?' I ask in a furious voice.

Now I'm slowly but surely starting to get worked up …

- 'I don't see what you're…'

- 'You know perfectly well that I'm talking about Ron, my stupid cousin', I burst out. 'You're both hanging around one another without acting, like idiots.'

Here it is, I've got worked up…

Hermione looks at me as if seeing me for the first time.

I called Hermione an idiot.

I calm down automatically.

- 'Hermione', I say, 'I'm sorry, I…'

- 'No', Hermione cuts me short, sounding exhausted. 'You're at the end of your tether, it can happen to anybody. Besides, you're not completely wrong…'

Really?

- 'I have to carry on with my round', Hermione states. 'See you tomorrow, I assume.'

- 'See you tomorrow', I answer.

Hermione goes away, and I head for the owlery again.

I shouldn't have talked to her like that. But I wasn't prepared for her to talk to me about Draco, I thought she was going to tell me that Ron had declared his love for her.

Suddenly I stop.

What did she say again? The corridors between the transfiguration classroom and the charms one.

I turn round.

--

He's here, walking nonchalantly. Poor Ron, he doesn't know what's about to happen to him yet.

- 'Ronald Weasley!' I yell.

Ron buries his head between his shoulders.

- 'Malorie!' He says, taking a step back.

- 'I've just seen Hermione', I cry out. 'Guess what she's told me?'

- 'I don't know', Ron answers sincerely.

- 'That's my point', I cut him short. 'You don't know because you haven't declare your love for her yet.'

- 'I tried', Ron says, 'I swear, I wanted to tell her when we came back to our dormitory yesterday night but Harry was with us. And this morning after breakfast, when Harry went to fetch his owl who was billing and cooing with yours, I tried, but Hermione said that we'd better join Harry, because he doesn't like the Slytherins and he was likely to put you in a tricky situation. And then I wanted to tell her during the day, but all the classes I have with Hermione, I have them with Harry too. And then tonight, after dinner, Harry had left us with Ginny, but… but…'

He can talk when he wants to… the cousin.

- 'But, you didn't told her, although you were alone with her', I complete.

- 'That's it', Ron confesses.

- 'You know what, Ron', I say in a calm voice. 'You need to take risks sometimes, to take the plunge.'

Isn't that what Hermione's just told me?

- 'I know', Ron says.

- 'Then stop shilly-shallying and chattering and go on', I say.

Now, I can tell you, I'm very convincing.

Ron stares at his shoes.

- 'OK, I'm going to leave you alone now', I say.

- 'Wait', Ron holds me back. 'I wanted to ask you…'

- 'Yes?'

- 'Well… Your interview?' Ron hesitates.

That's not what you wanted to ask me.

- 'Fine', I answer.

I stop, to make Ron understand that I'm waiting for his real question.

- 'And also', Ron says. 'That's… Well… Malfoy, he wasn't really in his right mind yesterday night, was he? I mean, had he drunk too much firewhisky or… ?'

- 'He really needs me for his trial', I explain. 'He needs a girlfriend who's worthy of his rank…'

I've got the feeling I'm repeating myself.

- 'That's all?' Ron asks. 'Then there's no way you… and him…'

- 'No', I reply. 'Assuming I leave the Moons' wishes aside.'

Ron looks at me without speaking.

I'm not sure, but I think he's thinking.

- 'They must see Draco Malfoy as the messiah', Ron concludes.

He's got it all, he's not as stupid as Draco believes he is.

- 'More or less', I grant him.

- 'And are you going to listen to your family?' Ron asks, sounding worried.

- 'I don't really want to', I say, trying to sound cynical.

I look into Ron's eyes, he seems sorry for me.

They're all determined to feel sorry for me today, aren't they?

- 'I have to go, or I'm going to be back really too late after the curfew', I say.

- 'The curfew has already begun', Ron states, 'You should go back to your common room.'

- 'I should', I reply with a fake rebel smile.

Ron can't stop himself from smiling before resuming his round.

Now, to the owlery.

--

There's nobody in the owlery when I arrive. I try to spot Miss Pimpernel.

She's billing and cooing with Potter's transsexual bird.

- 'Go on, come here!'

What's this joke? Who's speaking?

- 'Hedwig get down!'

Potter, again! I can't see him, yet he must be there…

I hide myself silently behind a perch covered with bird droppings.

Suddenly, Potter's head appears.

- 'Hedwig!' He calls.

Then Potter appears completely.

An invisibility cloak! I can't believe it, this toad owns an invisibility cloak. I wish Hermione had told me that…

Potter suddenly draws his wand.

- 'Get down immediately!'

Oh yes, I'm sure you're going to make her get down by threatening her!

The two owls suddenly start hooting louder that the others.

Yet I haven't seen Potter casting them a spell

Miss Pimpernel flies off with difficulty, she tries to stabilize herself for a few seconds, then charges at me.

I understand why they started crying, they saw me.

Miss Pimpernel's wings take a landing position, but the owl doesn't manage to slow down.

I stand up from my hiding place and catch my owl as it flies past to prevent her from crashing.

Suddenly, I can't move any more. Miss Pimpernel is still in my arms. I fall flat on the ground.

Let's see, what spell have I just been cast? Stupefy?

Feet appear on the floor, in front of my eyes.

- 'The Slytherin cousin', Potter whispers.

My limbs are released immediately, and I stand up again.

- 'But you represent a real danger to other people!' I yell Potter straight away. 'You-know-who must have made your head burst before dying, or maybe you were already unbalanced before.'

- 'I'm careful', Potter defends himself. 'You appeared suddenly… I acted out of caution, in case…'

- 'In case your stupidity would have been written on your forehead and you would have wanted to erase it…' I suggest, still yelling.

- 'I've got reasons to be mistrustful', Potter carries on. 'After what happened to me those last few weeks…'

- 'Don't tell me anything about your life', I cut him short.

I put Miss Pimpernel down on a small table and I start examining her.

She's hurt, there are still prickles stuck between her feathers.

Of course, she banged into a tree…

I draw my wand and cast my hands and wrists an invulnerability spell.

I'm used to casting this spell. Miss Pimpernel often gets hurt. Potter's still at my side, he's only looking at me, without speaking.

At last, I undertake to remove the prickles. As expected, my bird attacks my hands and writs.

I carry on self-confidently until I've removed all the prickles. Then I take out the pot of magical cream Hagrid gave me the first day I brought my hurt owl to him.

I open the pot and applies the cream on my owl's grazes. This time she's quiet. After a few minutes, I release her:

- 'You stay in the owlery until tomorrow', I tell her.

To show me her gratitude, Miss Pimpernel turns away from me and flies off to join Potter's owl.

Potter hasn't moved yet. I turn to face him, he displays a satisfied smile.

- 'What are you delighted about, Potter?' I ask.

- 'Your owl's a male', Potter states.

- 'You dirty-minded jerk, you looked at her while I was taking care of her', I yell.

- 'Taking care of him', Potter corrects me, his face radiant.

I take two biscuits out of my pocket.

I wanted to use them to attract my owl, but I didn't need them, she charged me.

- 'Miss Pimpernel, Hedwig', I call in a gentle voice, holding out the biscuits.

The creatures fly down their beam straight away. The two birds land more or less gracefully on the table.

I hold a biscuit out to each of them.

- 'Grab your owl and check', I tell Potter.

- 'What for? Now we know that yours is a male', Potter replies, sounding delighted.

- 'Because you looked at my owl's intimacy', I reply. 'So now you're going to look at yours'.'

Potter looks surprised.

He strokes the owl's back, and directs his caress so that the bird writhes about.

The bird quickly gets on its back and we can see what we wanted to on the right angle.

Ha ha, stupid boy-who-lived!

Potter looks both frightened and disgusted.

- 'Hey Potter', I say in a fake sympathetic voice, 'It's not the end of the world, our owls are two males in love with each other. We have to live with it, you know, attitudes change even for birds…'

- 'I can't stop laughing', Potter replies gloomily.

- 'Stop it Potty, this is really funny', I say. 'This is the scoop of the day…'

- 'If you say so', Potter answers. 'You're a really odd girl. Hermione and Ron told me you were nice, but I have trouble believing it. Even if you hate Malfoy.'

- 'See, we have something in common', I say.

Nothing therefore.

My stomach rumbles. It stands to reason : I haven't eaten.

- 'I'm going to leave you alone to let you come to terms with your pigeon's change of sex', I say.

I turn toward my owl, which is still on the table.

- 'See you tomorrow, Miss Pimpernel', I say.

Even if it's a male, I'm not going to change its name, she-he hasn't even understood she-he is called Miss Pimpernel yet.

I go out, Potter's still rooted on the spot in front of his owl and mine, which are cuddling each other again. I suppress my giggles and go away.

To the kitchens now.

--

It's more than half past nine when I arrive at the kitchen.

Less than a half of the Hogwarts' elves are here, some must have gone to bed, others must be cleaning the castle.

I locate the fireplace.

- 'Hello Winky', I say to the elf who's looking at the flames, looking gloomy.

The elf turns her head to me and her face suddenly lights up.

- 'Hello Miss', Winky answers.

- 'Have you had a nice day?' I ask.

- 'As usual', Winky answers, 'What about you miss?'

- 'A bit stressful, irritating, and I met a lot of people in the castle's corridors', I tell her.

- 'Can I get you a meal?' Winky asks.

- 'Yes', I say. 'Thank you.'

Only two minutes later, Winky comes back with a plate of stew and my favourite dessert : treacle tart.

She puts the dishes down on a nearby table. I sit down on one of the chairs.

- 'Enjoy your meal', Winky says, going away.

Mission accomplished Hermione, Winky goes to work with the other elves.

Three years ago, Hermione forced me to give money to a freedom-for-the-houselves association called SPEW. Hermione and I agreed that I had to be a hidden member of the association. The first, and only, mission Hermione entrusted me with was to make Winky less unhappy and more sociable. For three years, I've been applying myself to this task… Although Firewhisky is a faster way of making Winky happy.

Yet… I can see the ploy of this elf who's wearing odd socks and wool hats. In a way, he looks like Ron…

The door of the kitchen opens.

A long red hair appears.

Ginny! I'm going to meet all the Gryffindors today.

She spots me and heads for me.

- 'You hadn't have dinner with the others either, had you?' Ginny asks, sitting down next to me.

- 'No', I answer.

- 'I didn't want to go out outside the curfew, but I'm really angry', Ginny confides.

Half a dozen elves bring Ginny dishes and place settings.

You can see I come often. To the elves, Winky's become my own houself.

- 'Your boyfriend only had to lend his invisibility cloak to you', I say.

Ginny freezes and stares at me.

- 'How do you know he…?'

- 'I've just seen him in the owlery, he attacked me by the way', I say.

- 'Did he?' Ginny says, sounding surprised.

- 'He thought I was a Death Eater', I say.

- 'Is he still in the owlery?' Ginny asks.

- 'I assume, he must be too disgusted to move', I say. 'He's just discovered that his owl's a male and is gay.'

- 'I thought your owl was Hedwig's girlfriend', Ginny says.

- 'She is, I mean he is, Miss Pimpernel's a male too…'

Ginny burst out laughing. I can't stop myself from smiling too.

I've finished my meal.

- 'I'm going to leave you', I tell Ginny. 'If you ask me, you should keep an eye on Potter and check that he doesn't push his owl back. It's true, poor animal.'

Ginny hides her smile while I stand up.

- 'See you', Ginny says.

- 'See you', I say too.

And now, the corridors around the common room. I'm going to wait until it's later before going to bed, I don't want to bump into Draco.

Half past eleven, I'm playing with my wand in an empty classroom.

I'll wait a few more minutes.

Suddenly, the door of the classroom opens.

I stand up, I hadn't have time to hide.

Draco enters and looks at me.

- 'What wouldn't you do to avoid me?' Draco says.

There it is, I've been found. OK, let's be frank.

- 'Well, yes', I say. 'I didn't want to see you.'

- 'I've been hanging about in the common room for six hours', Draco confides.

- 'You were waiting for me?' I ask, surprised.

- 'Yes', Draco answers.

He was waiting for me!!

- 'So, what did your mother tell you after the wonderfully good impression I made on her?' Draco asks.

- 'Nothing particular', I lie.

I'm lying obviously on purpose.

- 'She advised you to go out with me, admit it!' Draco orders. 'The Moons are in a really high need for an influential and rich family right now, and I'm part of an influential and rich family.'

- 'Maybe', I answer.

Draco looks surprised of my frankness.

What am I doing? I need to stop right now.

- 'So?' Draco asks, 'Are you going to obey her? And to go out with me?'

What should I answer? Should I listen to my mother? To Hermione? Ron? Myself? But me, what do I want??

- 'I don't know', I answer sincerely.

Draco hesitates, he looks at me, he tries to speak but no sound goes out of his mouth.

- 'So?' He asks at last.

- 'I don't want to listen to my family, but in the mean time…'

In the mean time, Hermione may be right…

- 'In the mean time, it would be better for you and your family to go out with me.'

- 'Yes', I answer sincerely.

Draco takes a few steps towards me.

- 'So we're going out together?' Draco asks shyly.

Bloody hell, wake up, Malorie!!

- 'If I can overcome my disgust, we could make an attempt, and if we manage to be credible, we'll make it public', I say, trying to sound as confident as possible.

I told it, I told it!!

- 'That's fine with me', Draco answers, sounding surprised. 'Until when will the trial period last?'

- 'We'll see', I say in a neutral voice.

Draco moves even closer to me.

- 'From now on, we're a couple?' Draco asks.

Oooohhh….!!

- 'Unless you've changed your mind, which, sincerely, would suit me', I say.

Please, don't change your mind.

- 'I haven't', Draco answers straight away. 'I still want…'

- 'Fine', I say. 'I'm tired, I'm going to go to bed.'

I move toward the door and pass right near Draco who grabs my arm.

- 'What?' I ask coolly.

He's going to kiss me! He's going to kiss me!

Draco looks surprised by my cold voice.

- 'Good night', Draco says.

- 'Good night', I say too.

He didn't kiss me! He didn't kiss me.

I go out of the room and belt along to my dormitory to be able to let my tears run freely on my cheeks.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: Seventh day: The (first) snappings.**

- 'Come on Malorie, get up.'

Can somebody remind me why I feel so depressed?

I open my eyes slowly.

Now, I can remember.

- 'You look even more tired than you usually do, I've never seen so much shadows under your eyes.'

I've never cried that much either.

- 'Thanks for waking me up, Millicent', I say.

I get up slowly and get dressed.

- 'My god', Pansy moans. 'There are only three days left, how am I going to get Draco back? Malorie, do you have an idea?'

Take my place…

- 'Dress up as Potter and you'll have his full attention', I say, sounding indifferent.

- 'Don't joke', Pansy squawks. 'I'm serious.'

- 'But so am I', I say cynically.

- 'How did you make Blaise come back to you?' Pansy asks.

- 'What?' I ask, surprised.

- 'Everybody knows he tried to go out with you again, during the seventh years party', Millicent explains.

He can't have come out with the news, the bast…!

- 'After you'd rebuffed him, Blaise drank a lot', Millicent explains. 'And he told everybody.'

Yes, he can.

- 'Great', I say cynically.

I grab my bag and go out of the room, I hurtle down the stairs. The door of the common room opens without me touching it.

I must be really upset.

I spot Blaise and I stop, ready to go and tell him off, when suddenly, the door of the boy's dormitory opens.

My Draco…

I freeze right in the middle of the common room. Draco has frozen too, down the stairs. We look at each other.

One… Two… Three seconds.

At last I look away and speed toward the way out.

I shouldn't have looked at him in that silly way, because I must have looked silly…

--

Sitting at the Slytherin table, I can see Millicent and Pansy moving dangerously towards me.

I shouldn't have picked a seat were there were nobody around me.

Suddenly, Draco sits down next to me, astride the bench.

I stay stoical, I don't turn round to look at him.

- 'You've changed your mind?' I ask in a low voice.

Please no!!

- 'No', Draco answers.

Thank god.

- 'On the contrary, we need to meet today', Draco states insignificantly. 'To have a moment to ourselves…'

Visualize a choir of about a hundred members. Make them wear white dresses, the kind of white that really shows the dirt. Put all those beautifully-dressed people in a church, add a very bright white light on top of the choir. Now imagine this choir starting to sing « ALLELULLA, ALLELLULLA !! » Do you get it? This gives you a small idea of my emotional state right now.

- 'Don't talk that loudly', I whisper, discreetly pointing Pansy and Millicent. 'We'll see.'

- 'I'll wait for you anyway', Draco says, standing up.

…

He'll wait for me…

Pansy and Millicent sit down on each side of me.

Now I am surrounded by stupidity.

- 'What did he want with you?' Pansy chuckles, leaning towards me.

Don't touch me Pansy, chuckling might be infectious…

- 'Nothing, he was thinking that he hadn't insulted me for a long time, he wanted to make up for it', I explain.

- 'Really?' Pansy says, sounding disappointed. Next time he comes to talk to you, I mean, to insult you, could you tell him something about me?'

Well, listen, I know I'm a little cracked, but I'm not that sadomasochist. Don't be angry at me Pansy, but we all have our own problems.

A loud and noisy sound heralds the arrival of the mail.

To my great surprise, I notice Miss Pimpernel, who wasn't suppose to leave the owlery.

I'm even more surprised to see that Miss Pimpernel isn't flying towards me at all, but toward the Gryffindor table.

She crashes right in front of Potter who's just received some mail brought by his transsexual.

Potter stands up violently. He stares at the Slytherin table, he looks up and down the table.

To shorten his search, I give him a fake friendly wave. Potter spots me at last and beckons to me to fetch Miss Pimpernel.

This guy is really stupid, I'd like somebody to explain to me how he managed to save the world.

I resign myself and, with a smile on my face, I stand up and walk self-confidently toward the Gryffindors.

Not that I'm really self-confident, I'm not mad, I'm heading for an hostile land here…

- 'Take your bird back', Potter yells.

You want the war? Hold on Potty, I'm a world champion at this game!

- 'People will notice one day', I say sadly.

- 'What?' Potter asks furiously.

- 'You often come to talk to me using your owl as an excuse', I state calmly. 'One day somebody will be lucid enough to make people realize that the famous Harry Potter can't give the sentimental life of an owl that much importance.'

Potter looks appalled by my reasoning.

- 'She's not going to like that, your girlfriend, Jenny Weasley', I say, giving Ginny a sorry look.

- 'Ginny', the involved one corrects me, hiding her amusement.

- 'And your hatred for the Slytherins is too suspicious', I carry on. 'Don't people say that love and hatred are very close feelings?'

I know something about that.

- 'Don't worry about my owl, she'll leave when yours will', I say.

- 'Malorie', Potter says suddenly, a cruel look in his eyes.

Be careful Potter…

- 'I don't allow Gryffindors to call me by my first name', I say coolly.

- 'Really, are you sure of that?' Potter asks wearing the same cruel look.

What's does he think he's doing now? He's not going to come out with the news, is he?

Ron, Ginny and Hermione have turned their heads to look at Potter straight away, he's ignoring them despite their alarmed faces.

- 'Now that you've hurled enough stupidities for the day', Potter explains, 'You can leave.'

Is he threatening me here?!

- 'I intended to leave you, precisely. Dear Gryffindors', I say, greeting the other students in a friendly way, to their amazement.

I do an about-turn and goes away, trying to look as dignified as possible

I hope he's going to be told off for having dared to threaten me of revealing my connection to his friends.

--

The last potion class of my schooling. I've been waiting for that since my first lesson ever.

I move forward in the corridors, staying slightly behind the other Slytherins who're also going to the potion lesson.

- 'Hey…'

I turn round and see Ron's face in the doorway of a half-open door.

I head for him, he opens the door and closes it after me.

- 'Hermione and Ginny have asked me to tell you that they've forbidden Harry to do that again', Ron explains.

- 'All things considered, I was really provoking him', I admit.

Ron suddenly stares at his shoes.

- 'And… Well…', Ron starts.

Go on.

- 'About Hermione, what you told me yesterday…' Ron carries on with difficulty.

Are you going to tell me in the end?

- 'I think I'll tell her soon', Ron ends.

Really? Will the one hundred and fiftieth time be the one?

- 'Fine', I say, 'That's fine.'

I turn round to the door.

- 'That's all?' Ron asks, sounding surprised.

- 'That's all what?' I ask, turning round.

- 'Usually you cry at me that soon is not soon enough', Ron explains.

- 'Well, yes, but, do whatever you want Ron, and we're going to be late', I say.

I turn away to the door again. Ron doesn't follow me. He stays rooted on the spot, looking petrified.

Draco, Draco, see what I'm doing because of you.

--

He's looking at me!

- 'Now, your potion should have become canary-yellow', Professor Slughorn states.

At last, I look attentively at my cauldron and notice that my potion is brightly red.

- 'Well, Miss Moon', Slughorn says, stopping right in front of me. 'I'd got used to much less appalling results.'

And I had to struggle this year to get those not too appalling results…

Professor Slughorn moves away to go into raptures over Potter's and Hermione's cauldrons.

- 'Ooohh', Slughorn cries out, delighted.

What have I just told?

TOC.

A small bottle has just rolled to my feet, I look up to spot the owner of the bottle.

It's out of the question that I pick it up if it belongs to a Gryffindor. Or to Pansy, because if it does, there's a risk the thing might blow my face up.

No, Draco's the one who moves closer to me.

- 'Don't touch it Moon, it's mine', he says.

I notice several students watching the scene.

- 'Don't worry, I'm not stupid enough to touch anything that belongs to you, Malfoy', I say.

Draco catches me up and leans to get his bottle back.

- 'Nott's just told me you've made much progress this year in potion, and that it's the first time you're making your potion wrong', Draco whispers. 'Are you distracted Malorie?'

Malorie!! I've got those butterflies in my stomach every time.

- 'Not at all', I say.

- 'I hope this isn't because of me', Draco whispers with a small smile on his face. 'I haven't stopped looking at you since the beginning of the class, that's not what distracted you, is it?'

Yes it is.

- 'No', I answer in a low voice. 'It's the end of the year, that's it…'

Behind Draco, I can see Pansy waving at me.

What's the goose doing? Is she chasing flies away? … Ho yes, I know, she wants me to tell Draco about her.

- 'Why is Pansy skipping on the spot behind me?' Draco asks.

- 'Do you have a third eye?' I ask, surprised.

- 'No, I can see her reflexion in the window right in front of her', Draco explains.

I smile for one short second before wearing my neutral face again.

I need to control myself…

- 'Hey', Draco says, looking delighted. 'You're jaws muscles are working.'

- 'Very funny', I reply.

- 'So, about Pansy?' Draco asks.

She's in a too high stage of stupidity, we can't do anything for her any more.

- She asked me to tell you about her', I confess.

- 'Ho', Draco says. 'In that case I'm going to turn round and give her, for the first time in four days, a friendly smile.'

Don't do that!!

- 'Perfect', I say. 'That would help me, since we're supposed to help each other, precisely.'

Draco turns round, then moves back towards me.

- 'Don't forget', he whispers. 'We need to be able to talk freely today.'

You said it more nicely this morning..

- 'I'm not forgetting', I say.

Draco turns round and moves away for good.

--

A few short seconds later, Pansy whispers to me a thank you between her cauldron's rose fumes.

Whenever you need me Pansy…

--

As soon as the bell rings, heralding the next charms lesson, the students rush toward the door.

You won't believe how much students like charms lessons.

I wait for the crowd of students to leave before going out myself.

I go out and spot a mob of students.

- 'It was an accident!' Draco yells.

I don't know what you did, Draco, but coming from you, I'm not that sure…

I move closer and see Ron and Draco facing each other. Hermione and Potter are standing right behind Ron.

- 'All my books have had it', Ron yells.

Between Ron and Draco lies Ron's torn bag. All his books seems covered with a black indelible ink.

- 'So what, it's the end of the year, you won't need them any more', Draco cries out.

- 'You did it on purpose', Potter cries out.

- 'I admit that this is something I'd be able to do to Gryffindors', Draco says. 'But here, the risk of being in trouble is too high…'

Draco glances at me briefly.

What does he mean 'being in trouble'? Could it be that he… no, it can't, he's too proud…

- 'Ron', Hermione holds him back. 'I think it was really an accident.'

Hermione, too, glances at me.

At least we're two to think this…

- 'I'm not that sure, he's a professional liar', Potter says.

- 'That was a good thing for you, me being a professional liar, you never could have destroyed the Dark Lord without my precious help', Draco comes out with.

Scoop!

- 'Potter, you should listen to Granger', Draco carries on. 'I've noticed that she's often right.'

Hermione displays a surprised face.

So do most of the students, including me.

Now it's Ron's turn to glance at me.

- 'You haven't noticed anything, Malfoy…' Potter starts.

- 'Yet, according to what I've understood, you'd never have managed to find the Dark Lord's Horcruxes without Granger and Weasley', Draco hurls. 'It's a pity for them that all the glory is only yours…'

What are the Horcruxes?

- 'Without Harry, Voldemort would still be alive', Hermione states calmly.

- 'I know', Draco admits. 'I'm only saying that Harry's role was less important that it seems to be, and that yours and Weasley's were much more important that what people think.'

But what is he talking about, were Ron and Hermione that active?

All the students are listening to Draco, appalled by those revelations.

- 'What are you trying to do, Malfoy?' Potter asks.

- 'Well, you, Potter, you're corrupt and you're a profiteer', Draco explains. 'On the contrary, Weasley, although he's stupid and broke, is less boastful than you, since that was nearly the end of him and he's not making a fuss about it. And Granger, although she's a mudblood, is much brighter than you. You weren't even able to find Slytherin's locket which was in you own house.'

Slytherin locket? What is this all about?

- 'Shut up, some things have to keep confidential', Potter says, indicating the crowd of students.'

- 'That's lucky for you', Draco says.

- 'Don't add anything, Malfoy', Hermione says calmly.

Draco turns towards her.

- 'Fine', he says. 'Since the brains of the trio has spoken, I won't talk any more.'

Potter looks Hermione, then Draco. He goes and stands between the two of them, looking frightened.

- 'What's happening to you, Potter?' Draco asks, sounding amazed..

- 'It's to you that something's happening', Potter says, still frightened.

- 'So you're protecting Granger for fear that I might attack her?' Draco asks, smiling.

- 'Yes, I am', Potter answers.

- 'She knows perfectly well that I won't do anything to her, and so does Weasley', Draco says.

Potter turns towards Ron.

Ron, who looks furious at me. Could eyes send lightning, I would have been struck down.

- 'Little viscous dirty-minded viper', Ron grinds. 'come on Harry, let's go.'

Ron starts pulling Hermione backwards.

- 'For once I was almost nice', Draco cries out.

- 'We've perfectly understood that you're "nice" out of interest', Ron cries out.

The brave Ronnie's got it all, there are not many people who do. Everybody looks surprised, except Hermione who keeps glancing at me discreetly…

- 'I've been unmasked', Draco confesses, a smile on his face.

Oooohhh.

Suddenly, Ron does and about-turn, releases Hermione, shoves Potter, draws his wand and points it at Draco's throat.

- 'I forbid you', Ron growls. 'And if you insist too much, I'll deal with you.'

My cousin's defending me, bloody hell, I could cry out of joy!

- 'The others, around us, must be really puzzled', Draco says, hiding his panic.

Ron hasn't moved his wand.

- 'We're four to understand, that's enough', Ron says.

Me, Hermione, Ron, Draco, four, that's the right amount.

- 'Ron, stop it, you're going to be in trouble, come', Hermione cries out.

I won't do anything, you'll have to manage by yourselves.

- 'For me to be in trouble, Malfoy would have to complain, and if the right person asks him, he won't complain to anyone', Ron explains. 'Am I not right, Malfoy?'

Am I the right person?

- 'Yes, you are', Draco answers.

- 'That's not a good reason', Hermione cries out.

- 'don't forget, if you carry on with it, I'll deal with you', Ron repeats.

- 'Then you'll be able to deal with me today', Draco provokes him.

Hermione turns violently her head towards me. A big smile's spreading on her lips.

He said it…

- 'What?' Ron asks unbelievingly.

- 'You've perfectly understood. You see Weasley, the laws of nobility and blood purity can make miracles', Draco says.

Ron release his arm limply. He turns towards me, but keeps his eyes staring at the ground.

Suddenly, Ron throws a punch at Draco's face.

Hermione and Potter rush toward Ron and pull him backwards.

- 'Dracooo!!' Pansy yells.

- 'Leave!' Draco orders the Slytherins who have rush towards him.

- 'Do you want us to wipe the floor with him?' Theodore asks.

- 'No', Draco answers.

- 'Why?' Blaise asks, surprised, 'We can…'

- 'If he doesn't want to, that's maybe because he deserved it', I cry out loud enough for everybody to hear.

A few students stare at me, looking surprised.

I don't like to be the centre of the attention, I'll shut up next time.

Draco freezes and turn towards me.

- 'Yes, Moon, I deserved it', Draco agrees.

- 'What's all this racket!' Slughorn yells, arriving in the corridor at last.

- 'Nothing', I say.

- 'Are you sure of that?' Slughorn asks.

- 'Yes', Hermione answers straight away.

Slughorn looks up and down the crowd of students, waiting for another explanation.

- 'There's nothing', Draco cries out.

- 'Nothing', Ron adds.

--

Least you can say is that Hogwarts is a gossip-mine.

By lunchtime, everybody knew about Draco's revelation and Ron's punch. And right before dinner, the most incredible theories about Draco's innuendoes started to spread…

I go down the marble staircase to go to dinner with the others. By this time, most of the students must have finished their meal, which reduces my chances to bump into Pansy.

What a pity.

I reach the bottom of the stairs when the door of the great hall opens to let Millicent, Pansy and Draco out. I throw myself on the side, behind a statue of Dumbledore that had been erected a few months ago.

Pansy is in her usual giggle concert, she manages to stop to say a few words.

- 'Won't you go to the common room?' Pansy asks.

- 'Yes, I will, but I've just remembered something I have to do before', Draco explains. 'See you later, girls.'

- 'See you later, Draco', Pansy cries out hysterically.

They're talking to each other. Well, I should have known that, one day, Pansy would get Draco back… And I don't even have to be jealous…

- 'Ma-lo-rie, I've seen you', Draco says, laughing.

I'm going to look like an idiot again.

I get up, as dignified as possible.

- 'So, who were you hiding from?' Draco asks.

- 'Pansy', I confess.

- 'I thought so. Have you seen? I've done what you asked me to, I've been nice to Pansy', Draco explains..

I've never asked you that…

- 'And have you seen? I haven't hit Weasley', Draco says. 'I was even polite to Granger.'

- 'I've seen', I answer.

- 'We could go and have a short walk in the grounds', Draco suggests.

'Ho, yes, that would be wonderful.

- 'You're mad, somebody could see us', I quickly say.

- 'We could wait for the dark', Draco suggests.

Good idea.

- 'I don't really want to take such a risk', I say. 'People could see us and think…'

- 'That we're going out with each other', Draco concludes, a small smile on his face.

- '…'

- 'I was very nice to your idiot of a cousin, and to your stupid muggle friend', Draco starts. 'So, you could pull your weight too, or we'll never manage. I know perfectly well that you don't want to, but we've made a decision, so make an effort.'

That's easy to say, I know you don't give a damn about me.

- 'I'll need some time to become as hypocritical as you', I say.

- 'You'll need to think about speeding up', Draco says, his beautiful smile has disappeared.

My seer's inner eye foresees a fight…

- 'Thanks, I'll think about it', I say coolly.

- 'So, about the grounds?' Draco asks.

- 'Of course not', I say furiously. 'I told you people could see us.'

- 'So, what about the Trophy room?' Draco asks coldly.

That's the snoggers room… He wants to take me to the snoggers room…

- 'The risk's still to high', I say.

- 'An empty room then, I need you to tell me some things about you in order to be credible', Draco cries out.

I'm going to faint…

- 'You want to know some things about me', I hurl furiously. 'Very well, open your hears, I hate you, the only part of my family I like is the one I have to betray in public. My only true friend, I have to betray her in public. My uncles, my aunts and my grandparents hate me for wanting to study. The only thing that prevents them to repudiate me completely is that they, too, think I'm a real, pure-blood, Moon. Well, you know what? They're wrong, I'm a half-blood!'

Will I manage to shut up one day?

Amazed by my own words, I turn round, and run away. Draco hasn't moved.

--  
What's going to happen next?

How's Draco going to react? Is he going to push Malorie back, or will he accept to carry on with their fake relationship provided that Malorie doesn't disclose her true origin?

Are Ron's intense emotions going to urge him to create himself even more intense ones…?

Is Pansy going to win a brain in the next lottery?

All this, you will know in the next chapter…


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10: Seventh day : Lemon tart. **

I stop behind a big chestnut tree, out of breath.

Eventually, I'd have been in the grounds…

The weather's beautiful, and consequently, the grounds are crowded with students. I glance around me, seeking a friendly face with whom I could talk. Above all, I mustn't be alone, Draco would come and talk to me… I know he's going to want to cut short this situation… And I'm not ready for that.

- 'Are you reckless or what?' Hermione yells. 'Did you think about your future? What if Malfoy complains about it!'

With what he's just learned, he'll certainly complain about you, Ron. You can't rely on the little influence I can have over Draco any more.

- 'Hermione, you've talk to me about that all day', Ron cries out. 'I got it.'

Some students are moving closer discreetly, to hear the two lovers quarrelling. So am I.

Potter and my cousin are embraced against an oak tree. Ron and Hermione are standing, facing each other.

Come on, kiss each other…

- 'I don't think you do', Hermione cries out. 'But what on earth got into you?'

I'm not sure that shouting at him is the better way to encourage him to declare his love for you, Hermy.

- 'You know perfectly well, he provoked me', Ron starts. 'He knew she wouldn't have a choice and he… He… He took advantage of it.'

Oops, they're talking about me now… I'm going to stay in hiding I think… What do you mean I'm a tad dirty-minded?

- 'Didn't you think it would have been wiser to talk about it with her before!' Hermione cries out.

Indeed, that would have been cleverer.

- 'I know that, but I wasn't in my right mind, after what she'd told me earlier this morning', Ron explains.

What's he talking about, I didn't tell him anything special this morning.

- 'Why, what did she tell you?' Hermione asks, sounding surprised.

Good question.

- 'But who are you talking about?' Potter asks.

- 'No one', Ron and Hermione answers straight away.

Potter looks surprised, Ginny beckons him to move closer so that she can explain him in his hear.

- 'So?' Hermione asks.

- 'Well, she wasn't as she usually is', Ron says.

I had agreed to «go out» with Draco, so, naturally: I wasn't in my right mind.

- 'Usually', Ron carries on. 'She is… You know… She tells me off a little… Always about the same thing.'

Ron, Ronnie, Ron, my dear cousin, you've got it at last, don't stop now, you can do it… You've come out with something there… Be brave!

- 'And then, just like that', Ron carries on. 'She had stopped pushing me… And… Well… it was weird… To realize that she'd… Grown… Weary.'

- 'I haven't understood anything', Hermione confessed, looking amazed.

Well, I did. For years I've been pushing Ron into declaring his love for you, I stop, and he makes his mind up straight away, I'll never understand boys, they're working too strangely. They can't possibly come from this planet.

- 'We need to inspect the charms corridor', Ron reminds.

- 'Oh yes', Hermione remembers.

- 'See you later', Ron tells Potter and Ginny.

Hermione and Ron move away from the sickening couple.

He was on the verge of doing something in public. Now Ron must already have chickened out. But still, it's maybe a step forward.

Delighted, I turn round, I come face to face with…

My Draco…

- 'You left quite fast', Draco says.

Keep a neutral face, keep a neutral face, quick!!

I look around me. Some Slytherin students are looking at us, and start displaying bemused faces, forecasting a possible show.

- 'Later', I say, indicating the students around us with a head movement.

I move away, the Slytherins don't even hide their disappointment.

He didn't even hold me back.

I move toward the castle, once at the gates, I glance discreetly backwards. Draco's just started to walk towards the castle too.

I move toward the common room.

I had enough time to hide in my dormitory. Well, I'll see him tomorrow, that might not be very good to let things drag out like this… Two nights in a row crying, I'm going to end up dehydrated and looking like an old prune.

At last, I bravely head for the empty classroom where a great event of my life took place yesterday.

--

I sit down on a chair facing the door.

The door opens, as I expected, after a few minutes. And Draco enters the room.

- 'You were waiting for me?' Draco asks.

- 'Yes, I was', I answer sincerely.

- 'So…', Draco starts hesitantly. 'You would have agreed for us to have a moment to ourselves at last.'

- 'Yes, I would', I say coolly.

- 'Well… Listen, Malorie', Draco carries on.

Please, no, I'm not going to survive…

- 'Don't worry, I understand you wanting to stop, after all, you needed a pure-blood, and I'm not', I say, detached.

- 'In fact', Draco starts. 'I thought you might have lied for me to change my mind. If you did, you should know that I won't change my mind.'

But I'm really half-blood, Draco… What should I do? Shall I tell him that I lied?

- 'Can I trust you Draco?' I ask, staggered by my own daring.

- 'Yes, you can', Draco answers, looking surprised.

- 'Then don't tell anyone that I'm a half-blood', I say, still coolly.

Nooooo!! Damned Malorie, shut up and enjoy…

- 'So…' Draco starts awkwardly. 'You're really…?'

- 'Yes, I am', I say in a neutral voice.

- 'Well, then, in that case', Draco states. 'It changes a few things…'

Sniff, sniff, come on, finish me off… ! (I don't know how to translate "snif")

- 'Do you intend to reveal you're a half-blood?' Draco asks.

- 'I didn't even intend to tell you', I confess coldly.

A long silent moment passes.

- 'You know, those last months were quite strange for me', Draco tells.

Go on!

- 'I guess', I say, sounding unconcerned.

- 'In fact, Snape was the one who convinced me to work as a spy for the Order of the Phoenix', Draco tells.

I don't care, what are you waiting for??

- 'All things considered, Snape is the person I've spoken with the most those last months', Draco reports.

- 'With Snape?' I say, dismayed. For once, I sympathize with him.

- 'Yes', Draco says, sounding amused. 'You know, he helped me a lot. I know perfectly well that, with or without me, the Order would have managed, and Potter would still have found a way to destroy the Dark Lord…'

I'm going to burst out, please, stop torturing me…

- 'Couldn't you shorten?' I ask coolly.

- 'All this to say that Rogue was a half-blood and had hidden it from everybody. I know my father and other Death Eaters knew', Draco explains. 'The fact that he was half-blood didn't prevent him to be useful for both the Dark Lord and the Order of the Phoenix. And it didn't prevent me to be… Sad, when he died. After all, we were both Death Eaters working for the Order of the Phoenix, so who cares the purity of our blood?'

Draco, Draco what are you…?

- 'What's the point of your story?' I ask, trying to look as serene as possible.

- 'Let's say that the fact that your blood's not as pure as I thought, might not be a problem', Draco explains with difficulty. 'In fact, what's important is what people believe. And people believe you're pure-blood. As soon as they don't learn the truth…'

Oooohhh!!

- 'Are you saying that the fact that I'm half-blood doesn't bother you?' I ask.

- 'Well', Draco starts. 'We're only going to be together a few months, that's not as if we were going to get married and to end our lives together. And you're not a muggle either…'

Only for a few month… This is brutal, I fell like I've just been given a punch in my stomach. I knew it, but it's never pleasant to hear.

- 'So?' I ask.

- 'So, let's get back to our moment', Draco states, getting his smile back on his face.

He takes a chair and sits down in front of me.

YEAH!

- 'You've your head screwed on right', I say cynically.

- 'Yes, I do', Draco says. 'So, Malorie, what's your favourite colour?'

- 'Why would you care, Malfoy?' I ask calmly.

- Make an effort Malorie. We have to be credible', Draco explains. 'And start getting used to calling me by my first name.'

I'd better not, Draaaccoo!

- 'Red', I say.

- 'OK, favourite dessert?' Draco asks.

- 'Treacle tart', I say.

- 'Well… Favourite book?'

- 'You can read, can you?' I ask nastily.

- 'Sweetheart', Draco reproaches.

Yeeaahh, sweetheart!!

- 'Oh, this is brutal here', I say, strongly disgusted.

- 'OK, we're going to content ourselves with first names', Draco states, amused by my excessive reaction. 'Book?'

- 'Books written by a woman called J.K. Rowling', I tell him..

- 'Red, treacle tart and Rowling, I got it', Draco states.

- 'What about you?' I ask feverishly.

- 'Green, lemon tart and…' Draco starts.

- 'And you don't have a favourite book', I conclude.

- 'No', Draco says, a small guilty smile on his face. You could lend me one of those books I spotted in your cupboard, one that you think I might like.'

A short minute of silence, I want to savour this moment.

- 'We'll see', I say. 'I care for my books.'

Draco bursts out laughing.

- 'You're really doing it on purpose. Stop wanting to cause a fight, I have nerves of steel', Draco states.

- 'Believe me, my nerves are stronger than yours', I provoke him.

- 'I'm unbeatable, I had Snape as a teacher', Draco states, smiling.

- 'I leave with Pansy and Millicent, and I never shout at them, which proves that I've got the right nerves', I claim.

Draco bursts out laughing.

- 'OK, you win this time', he agrees.

Another silence settles down.

- 'Well…' I say hesitantly. 'Do you have another favourite thing?'

- 'Well', Draco says, 'right now…'

I'm going to have to leave, sniff, sniff!!

Another silent moment.

-'I think I'm going to leave', I say.

- 'So soon?' Draco asks.

I would have liked to stay, but I have to be cold, distant, cool, nasty…

- 'Well, we don't have that many things to say, do we?' I remark.

- 'We're going to find', Draco says. 'You haven't eaten tonight, have you?'

- 'No, I haven't', I confide. 'I might make a trip to the kitchens.'

- 'I've never been there', Draco reveals. 'I'll come with you.'.

- 'To the kitchens?' I ask, taken aback.

- 'Is the risk of being seen by someone too high?' Draco asks.

- 'No, not from this room', I say.

- 'Then, shall we go?' Draco asks, standing up.

He's going to see me with Winky!

I sand up, pass Draco and head for the door.

We move forward at a mistrustful pace in the corridors.

When suddenly, we hear footsteps moving closer.

Draco and I give each other an alarmed look. He grabs my arm and pulls me behind a tapestry, behind which we are very, very cramped.

- 'But were has he gone?' Pansy squeals in the corridor.

- 'You're going to see him tomorrow anyway', Millicent states. 'I don't know what Malorie told him, but she's really put things right…'

- 'What's weird is that he was as nice to you as to me', Pansy says.

I could kill to see Millicent's face right now.

- 'About tomorrow, what do you think would be best, my mauve skirt, or my blue trousers?' Pansy asks.

The too girls' footsteps stop.

- 'The skirt', Millicent says, a bit coldly.

- 'And what kind of make-up?'

I can't believe it… They've stopped in the corridor.

Draco starts laughing.

- 'Stop it', I whisper, amused by the dramatic situation too.

- 'Do you think they're going to stay here long?' Draco asks in a low voice.

I shrug my shoulders.

Suddenly, Draco reduces the little space there were between the two of us.

I look at him furiously.

Don't trust my face, Draco… Please, don't trust my wild look.

- 'About my hair, I think I could simply let it free on my back', Pansy states.

Despite my murderous look, Draco moves his face slowly closer to mine. I move my head back as far as I can, and bang into the stone wall.

- 'I'm going to wear my boots, they will look great with the skirt', Pansy carries on. Oh dear, what couldn't you do to try and please Draco.'

I can hear Millicent's and Pansy's steps in the corridor again.

Draco stops an inch from my lips.

- 'We'll have to manage to do it one day', Draco says.

- 'They're gone', I state, pushing Draco back.

I go out quickly and resume walking in the corridor toward the kitchens.

What a jerk I am!

--

I move toward the fireplace, Winky's still there, a bottle in her hand.

Oh no, that's not true, she's drinking again!

I kneel down near her and take her bottle.

- 'Hello Winky', I say.

- 'Miss', Winky says, radiant. 'I'm glad to see you.'

- 'Why did you drink?' I ask, frowning. You'd promised me and your friend with the hat that you would stop drinking.'

- 'I saw the calendar today', Winky says. 'It's been three years Mr Crouch has been dead.'

How did I manage to forgot this damned anniversary! I don't even have a really busy life… Although lately…

- 'Oh', I cry out. 'Winky, I had forgotten, I'm sorry. But I don't want you to drink again tonight.'

- 'OK, Miss', Winky says. 'I'd better tell the others to bring you two meals.'

- 'One will be enough', I say. 'Yet, if you have some lemon tart.'

Winky nods.

- 'If you find your mate with the hat', I say. 'Could you tell him to come here…'

I'm going to tell that Dobby off, how could he have let Winky drink?

Winky nods once more and moves away.

- 'You remembered about the lemon tart', Draco says, looking delighted.

How could I forget?

- 'You see, I'm making an effort', I say.

I move toward a table, Draco's following me.

- 'Who's that houself?' Draco asks.

- 'Hermione asked me to take care of her', I confess.

- 'Of a houself?' Draco asks, sounding surprised. 'She's really got weird ideas.'

A crowd of elves come up to us with dishes in their arms.

With Winky it's easier, she knows my tastes, she brings me only what I need.

I can see Winky and Dobby talking. To my surprise, I notice that Dobby's afraid when he looks at Draco.'

- 'Do you know Dobby?' I ask Draco.

- 'Dobby?' Draco asks, sounding surprised. That's our former houself.'

- 'You're obviously terrifying him', I say, indicating Dobby with a head movement.

Dobby and Winky move bravely closer to us.

- 'What's he doing at Hogwarts?' Draco asks, sounding surprised.

- 'He's been working here for three years with Winky', I explain.

Dobby and Winky join us.

- 'Hello, Miss and Mister', Dobby says shyly.

I have to make Winky go away.

- 'Well… Winky, could you try and find us some lemon tart', I say.

- 'There's no', Winky answers, 'We've already looked for some.'.

- 'Could you check once more?' I ask.

Push off! I need to chat with your mate in hat.

- 'Yes', Winky says, moving away.

- 'Why did you let her drink?' I ask Dobby furiously as soon as Winky's far enough.

- 'She didn't drink alcohol', Dobby defends himself shyly.

- 'And what's this?' I say, holding out the bottle Winky had in her hand, furiously.

- 'Pumpkin juice I've bewitched to taste like butterbeer', Dobby explains in a low voice.

Really? Clever that hat!

I smell the bottle and swallow a sip from it.

It really tastes like it.

I look at Winky who's opening the cupboards one after the other.

She's walking straight, indeed.

- 'I'm sorry Dobby', I say. 'You're cleverer that I thought.'

Dobby scowls when he hears my apology.

I'd forgotten, you never apologize in front of the elves.

- 'Yes, but you won't come back any more next year', Dobby squeals.

- 'I don't see the point', I confess.

- 'Winky listens to you more than to me, miss', Dobby explains.

- 'I've already talked to Ginny about it', I say. 'She'll come from time to time…'

- 'Miss Whisky will never be as efficient as you, Miss', Dobby says.

It's true I could be proud of me.

- 'And me', Dobby carries on, 'I can't talk to her…'

- 'I've noticed', I say cynically.

Dobby gives me a small sheepish smile.

- 'If you ask her to be joined with you according the houselves' laws, she might be happier', I declare. 'She might forget Crouch.'

Dobby's become crimson.

I'd told you, this is Ron's houself version.

- 'I…' Dobby starts.

- 'But you do whatever you like', I say.

- 'Yes…' Dobby says. '… I'll go back to work.'

Dobby moves away, looking embarrassed.

- 'You're trying to marry houselves', Draco states in an amused voice.

- 'Yep', I say. 'This is my favourite pastime.'

I eventually start eating.

- 'Do you go to the kitchens often?' Draco asks.

- 'Several times a week', I confess.

I eat without a word, while Draco watches the kitchens around us.

- 'I can't believe that in seven years, I've never come here', Draco says. 'After all, I often missed meals involuntarily, this could have helped me.'

- 'Better not, we would have met often', I say..

We would have met in private… alone…

- 'Yes', Draco says, looking again at the busy elves. 'That's a shame.'

--

A few minutes later. We're in the corridors leading to the common room.

- 'This time', I say. 'We don't have anything to talk about any more, we will have to go back into our dormitories.'

I don't want too.

- 'No, Draco says. 'There's one thing left.'

- 'What?' I ask in an irritated voice. 'My favourite figure? It's seven.'

- 'Really, me too', Draco says. 'And the number…'

- 'Thirty one', we say simultaneously.

I look at Draco and can't manage to hide my embarrassment.

Quick, impassive face, quick…

- 'You go first?' I ask.

- 'Yes', Draco says.

He stops for he second, then moves forward alone in the corridor while I stay behind.

I wait a few seconds before resuming my walk, behind Draco.

No need to point out that I've probably just spent the most pleasant moment of my life. I've the feeling my brain's been working in slow motion tonight.

I pass a bend in a corridor and crashes into someone.

My Draco!

- 'I've forgotten', Draco says. 'There's one thing left.'

- 'What?' I ask, surprised.

- 'We need to be credible, you said so too', Draco explains.

- 'Yes', I say.

- 'At every level', Draco adds.

I'm starting to understand… Please, bloody heart, stop bolting, he's going to hear you.

Slowly, Draco leans over me.

Oooohhh !

- 'Are you going to push me back?' Draco asks, an inch away from my lips.

Don't stop, I'm not allowed to tell you that I really want you to kiss me.

- 'No', I answer, amazed by my own words.

Suddenly, Draco reduces the one inch space.

--

Twenty minutes later. Draco and I move away from each other, in shock.

- 'Well', Draco says, confused.

- 'Yes', I say, embarrassed.

Why did my brain have to freeze… for twenty minutes? I don't really complain about it, but he's going to suspect something.

- 'We should be credible enough at that level', Draco says.

Could we check again? Practice again?

- 'We might have to do it ag…', Draco starts.

- 'Yes', I interrupt him.

That's not real, what have I just said? Brain, I'm ordering you to set out again.

- 'Fine', Draco says, sounding amazed.

- 'We should go now', I say awkwardly.

- 'Yes', Draco says, moving away from me at last.

- 'I go first or you…?' I say.

- 'Yes', Draco interrupts me.

I go first, OK.

I move forward, so does Draco.

We've misunderstood each other, I think!

- 'You, or…?' Draco asks.

- 'Yes', I say.

My good, my hormones are preventing me from finding a way to understand.

- 'I leave first, and you wait a few minutes', I manage to say.

- 'Yes', Draco says.

I move forward in the corridor, feeling light… Light…


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11: Eighth day : The results. **

- 'But you're not asleep!' Millicent cries out. 'I was going to wake you up.'

- 'Thanks', I say, getting up.

Millicent looks at me, still amazed.

- 'It's the last day of our schooling and it's the only day you manage to wake up on time', Millicent remarks.

I've got some sort of butterflies in my stomach, and my jaw's muscles are tensing up to form a smile. Could I be… Happy?

- 'Why are you smiling?' Pansy asks.

I'm Draco's girlfriend!

- 'I… I,' I hesitate.

Quick, find something!

- '… It's the end of the year', I say at last.

Am I suspicious?

- 'Don't talk about it', Pansy moans. 'It's my very last chance, I'll never be able to get Draco back afterwards.'

Oh, then you can rely on me for fighting tooth and nail for you not to have him.

- 'You know what, yesterday night, Millicent and I walked all around the castle to find Draco', Pansy explains. 'It's weird we didn't meet, we went to the kitchens.'

I know, and if only you knew, Pansy… You offered me some wonderful seconds really close to Draco.

- 'You're certainly quite smiling this morning', Millicent remarks.

I have to stop thinking about Draco, and about yesterday night… Draco… Yesterday night… Draco…

My smile's spreading more and more on my face.

I'M DRACO'S GIRLFRIEND!!

- 'And to think that I believed you'd be freaking out because of your results which are supposed to arrive today.'

Millicent, you really know how to spoil the fun.

- 'I try not to think about it too much', I say.

I don't want it any more, I want to have failed, I don't want to join any more, I don't want to be away from Dracooo…

- 'I know!' Pansy cries out suddenly.

That your brain's in your feet?

- 'I'm going to wait down the boy's dormitory', Pansy carries on, 'This way we can go and have our breakfast together. And I'll have several minutes alone with him.'

No, don't do it, please, Pansy!! I can't fight against you!

Too late, Pansy rushes toward the door and hurtle down the stairs at top speed.

I turn round quickly before the look on my face could betray me in front of Millicent.

- 'She forgot her bag', Millicent says behind me.

- 'I don't think that's her priority', I say.

- 'Yes', Millicent answers with a faint giggle.

For a few seconds, Millicent roots on the spot behind me.

Did I say something suspicious?

At last, Millicent turns away.

--

A few never-ending seconds later, Pansy enters the room again.

Pansy has a crestfallen look on her face.

Thanks god.

- 'So?' Millicent asks.

- 'Blaise told me I'd already left', Pansy says, sounding disappointed. 'He did just like you, Malorie, he woke up earlier than usual.'

Radiant, I stand up straight, take my bag and head for the common room.

Stop smiling, Millicent's giving you strange looks!

- 'I'm sorry for you', I tell Pansy.

No need to tell you that I'm a very good liar.

--

Once outside the common room, I head for the great hall, when suddenly, Draco appears in front of me.

- 'Good morning', he says, smiling.

- 'Good morning', I say in a neutral voice.

Draco leans over me hesitantly, as if to kiss me.

Come on, have balls, Malorie.

I reduce quickly the distance between our lips before moving away even quicker.

I kissed him! I, Malorie Moon, kissed Draco Malfoy!

- 'We're not going to spend two hours on it', I explain calmly.

On the contrary, once we want to, then we can spend two hours there…

- 'I wasn't sure you wouldn't…' Draco starts. 'Well, what's new, Malorie?'

- 'Why would you care?' I ask in a placid voice.

How am I talking to him? I can't believe it, I have to be distant, but not that distant.

- 'Malorie', Draco reproaches me kindly.

So cute!

- 'Pansy tried to catch you outside the boy's dormitory', I say. 'But you'd already left.'

I'm talking to him about Pansy, that's crazy, what a twit I am!

- 'And what about you, Malfoy?' I ask coldly. 'What's new?'

Even better, I'm talking about another girl who's in love with him, and I'm colder and colder to him. If he doesn't fall madly in love with me now, I won't say I'm surprised!

- 'Well, my girlfriend refuses to call me by my first name', Draco says. 'Except for that, everything is fine.'

Girlfriend… And he's the one who said it!

- 'We'll see', I say in a carefree voice.

We hear footsteps.

Draco grabs my arm and pulls me behind a tapestry. There's a space where barely two people can stand up.

Well… What could I say, except : HURRAY!!

Draco closes the tapestry behind him.

- 'I was waiting for you here, just now', he says in a low voice.

He was waiting for me!

- 'It's a pity you didn't forget me', I whisper. 'We wouldn't have to hide.'

- 'Malorie', Draco reproaches me kindly.

I try to hide a guilty smile on my face.

Draco intercepts my smile, and starts smiling too.

- 'Listen, Pansy', Blaise Zabini's voice rings out in the corridor. 'I don't know why he got up so early.'

- 'We're not going to spend two hours here', Draco says suddenly in a low voice.

- 'He's your friend', Pansy squeals. 'You can tell me if he's stuck on somebody.'

- 'What?' I whisper to Draco, surprised.

I barely have time to understand what he means when…

HEAVEN!!

- 'Maybe', Blaise admits. 'But if he is, she's not a Slytherin, because he's taking to many precautions.'

Please, stop in the corridor, so that we can stay stuck here and… carry on.

- 'Then she's a Ravenclaw', says Pansy's voice from farther and farther, 'Although… He talked with Hermione Granger the other day… That might be her, that would explain why he doesn't say anything about her being a mudblood anymore. They must know each other better now, since she's a mini-Phoenix and he was stuck with them…'

I absolutely have to tell Hermione that… To frighten her.

- 'I doubt Draco could go out with a girl who's not pure-blood', Blaise states.

- 'Or maybe a half-blood', Millicent says in a lower voice.

- 'I don't think so', Blaise says.

You're wrong.

- 'You must be right', Pansy says, 'but I'm still going to keep an eye on the mudblood.'

The Slytherin's voice are too far for us to hear them now.

I'm going to have to let him go! No, I don't want to… please, only a few seconds

--

Ten minutes later, I release Draco at last.

I'm really lacking some courage.

- 'Do you go first?' I ask.

Stay!

- 'OK', Draco says. 'Will we meet later?'

Yes!

- 'We'll see', I say calmly.

- 'You've answered « we'll see » twice now', Draco says.

According to my vicious way of thinking, it means : I'm dreaming of it.

- 'Well, we'll see… Draco', I say.

I called him Draco! I called him Draco!

- 'You called me Draco', Draco notices, a wide smile on his face.

Yes, did you notice?

- 'If you point it out every time I call you by your first name, I don't think I'm going to go on doing it', I explain.

- 'No, keep doing it', Draco says.

He leans over me, and…

Time should stop.

- 'Well', I say as soon as he's released me. 'We're not going to spend our day here. I go out, you wait two minutes.'

Irritated with myself, I go out of my hiding place.

What a jerk I am!

I move towards the great hall.

--

I'm sitting next to Pansy and Millicent.

Draco's between Theodore and Crabbe. In front of me.

- 'Tell me, Draco', Pansy chuckles. 'Have you understood Slughorn's lesson yesterday? I wasn't at all focussed, so I didn't understand a thing.'

Whether you're focussed or not doesn't make a great difference.

- 'No', Draco says. 'I haven't listened at all.'

Suddenly, something brushes against my foot.

My god, is there a cat under the table or what?

- 'Why?' Pansy asks, a seductive smile on her face.

- 'I had lost my concentration', Draco says.

Wait! Unless cats are able to levitate, this isn't a cat!

- 'Just like me', Pansy says. 'Why weren't you focussed, you?'

Well, you Pansy, it was because you have the IQ of a plum pudding, and Draco… Well I hope Draco's not going to tell you what you want to hear!

But what's that thing under the table?

I move backward and glance quickly under the table, before moving forward again straight away to dive into my bowl of porridge.

It's a foot! And not any foot, Draco's foot! Draco's playing footsie with me!

I look up and glance discreetly at Draco, he smiles discreetly when he realizes that I've just noticed his ploy.

- 'I think I was unfocussed…' Draco tells Pansy. 'Because of a girl.'

- 'Really?' Pansy giggles.

Please, I hope he's not talking about Pansy…

- 'Yes', Draco answers.

He gives me a discreet look and a small smile.

So, he's not talking about Pansy.

Just for you to know, he's still playing footsies with me.

- 'The mail's arriving', Nott points out.

My results! Not in front of the others!

Like almost every day, an owl lands in front of Draco. Then another owl lands in front of me. Shaking, I untie the letter, which is addressed to me.

- 'Are you OK?' Millicent asks me.

- 'Yes', I answer while Draco's secretly watching me over his own letter.

I suddenly stand up, forgetting Draco's foot, and I run out of the great hall, holding my still sealed letter.

I close the door behind me, and sit down on a step near Dumbledore's statue.

Slowly, I unseal the letter, unfold it and start reading it.

Miss Moon, I have the honour of announcing you that your application for HLS, High Linguistic Studies, has been accepted. Your school results and your interview with the examiners were conclusive. Therefore, you are expected on Friday, June 30th, on platform 7 ¼, to board on the HLS train, which will take you around the world during three years, while providing for your new schooling.

Best regards,

I'm in.

I read the letter again. The door opens, I look up. Hermione closes the door slowly, before starting to run toward me.

- 'So?' She asks, looking overexcited.

- 'I'm in', I say slowly.

- 'That's great!' Hermione cries out, looking radiant.

I stay still.

- 'Isn't it great?' Hermione asks, surprised by my lack of reaction.

No, it's not.

- 'Yes, it is', I say.

- 'It's because of Malfoy?' Hermione asks.

- 'Yes', I confess.

- 'But you still want to join the HLS, don't you?' Hermione asks.

- 'I don't know now', I answer. 'It depends.'

- 'On what?' Hermione asks.

- 'On… I don't know', I confess.

The door of the great hall opens suddenly.

Hermione climbs the stairs behind me. The Slytherin seventh year students arrive, lead by Millicent.

I have to look happy!

I display a radiant smile while hiding behind the letter.

- 'So?' Millicent asks.

I sit up and smile broadly.

- 'I'm in', I say, beaming.

- 'Great', Pansy and Millicent cry out simultaneously.

Pansy doesn't even know what subject I intend to study.

- 'Yeah', I say, looking happy.

- 'When do you leave?' Pansy asks.

I glance briefly at Draco, he's staying behind the others.

No reaction from him, yet nobody else than me can see his face.

- 'Tomorrow, right after getting off the Hogwarts express', I say, 'I'll take another train.'

Draco doesn't seem affected by that in the least.

I've just understood, it suits him for us to be together, only for these days. Then we'll have to send each other letters to prove our « relationship ». How could I have believed for one second that he would be affected by my leaving… Maybe he's pretending in front of the others.

- 'Well', I say, still displaying my tense smile. 'We've got lessons…'

- 'Yes', Millicent says.

I stand up and climb the stairs behind me, holding back my furious tears.

--

Around the end of the transfiguration lesson.

A small pain makes my ankle sting, I bend and pick up a tiny parchment folded in…

…800 apparently.

I look round the class and see Hermione giving me a furtive look.

I unfold the parchment.

After three days, I manage to spread it out and read :

« We need to talk, join me in the first empty room after the bend in the corridor. Turn right outside the classroom. »

I'm not sure I'm going to come, Hermione. And I don't really feel like talking about it.

--

At the end of the lesson, in accordance to the instructions, I take a right outside the classroom, leaving the other students who all go left.

Somebody's following me! Yet, Hermione's left before me!

Once in front of the classroom in question, I turn round and see Draco.

I absolutely have to hide from him that I'm furious at him.

- 'Later', I tell him.

- 'Where are you going?' Draco asks, moving closer to me.

- 'I have an appointment', I answer coldly.

- 'With me?' Draco asks, giving me an adorable little smile.

I'd better not. I'm still in shock.

- 'No', I answer placidly.

- 'With whom then?' Draco asks, moving his face away from mine.

- 'Somebody great whom I've been liking for years', I reveal.

- 'Well you can tell him that you've got a boyfriend', Draco says phlegmatically.

- 'After October the latest, I won't have one any more', I remind him.

- 'You'll find another one among the HLS students', Draco says. 'But when it's time for it only. Right now, you're mine.'

I'm his! He said so… Why am I so affected by it? I'm an independent girl, who provides for her, I don't want to forget it.

- 'You won't be able to keep an eye on me from tomorrow on', I say in a neutral voice.

- 'I never intended to keep an eye on you', Draco says.

Yes, keep an eye on me! No… I mean, I'm an independent girl who… Damn it, I'm not only saying the opposite of what I think, now even my thoughts are conflicting.

- 'So what are you doing here?' I ask.

- 'Well, right now, I'm fighting with you', Draco reveals. 'But a few short seconds from now, I'll certainly be kissing you.'

I'm confused enough without it, there's no need to let my hormones interfere… Go away!

- 'We're right in the middle of a corridor', I remind him angrily.

- 'So what?' Draco asks calmly.

- 'So', I say furiously. 'Somebody could…humf.'

Push him back, you're hurting yourself Malorie.

The door next to us opens suddenly. Hermione appears in the doorway.

I remove my arms, which have miraculously landed around Draco's neck.

Well, It happens quite often, I should control my body a little better.

- 'I was wondering what you were doing', Hermione explains, a smile on her face. 'But you seem very busy.'

- 'I…', I start.

- 'She's very busy indeed', Draco says, beckoning Hermione to close the door again.

- 'No', I say, pushing Draco back, and entering the classroom.

Thanks Hermione, you're saving me from my own instinct.

- 'Is she your appointment?' Draco asks.

- 'Yes, she is', I answer. 'I've never told you it was a boy.'

But I've implied it quite clearly.

- 'That's true', Draco admits.

He takes a step forward inside the classroom, and kisses me very briefly on my lips.

Wonderful little kiss.

- 'See you later Malorie', Draco says.

- 'Yeah', I say. 'See you later, Malf…'

Draco freezes and looks at me as if he'd just hurt himself.

- '…Draco', I correct.

Draco gives me a bright smile and moves away. I close the door behind him and look at Hermione.

- 'I understand better now', Hermione says, laughing.

- 'This isn't funny', I say.

Well, this morning it was… things really change very quickly lately.

- 'How are you going to do?' Hermione asks.

- 'He showed no sign of disappointment when I said I was going to leave', I say. 'So I'm going to leave, and respect our agreement. I'll only have to send Draco fake love letters, I believe.'

- 'Oh, Malorie, I'm sorry', Hermione says.

- 'No, it's my fault, I knew he didn't even like me and… now I only got what I deserved. But I might take the most of it until the last moment anyway.'

- 'And you're perfectly right', Hermione cries out. 'Especially since he seems to be really willing to play the perfect couple.'

- 'Yes', I say. 'Very willing.'

- 'Does it happen often…?' Hermione asks.

- 'What?'

- 'You kissing each other?'

Not often enough… no, too often… not enough… too…No… Rrrrhhh

I growl as an answer.

- 'And is he a good kisser?' Hermione asks.

Hermione! What an… indiscreet and… surprising question from you.

I smile to Hermione.

- 'Hermy!' I say, laughing.

- 'So?' Hermione asks.

Get out of this body, Devil, give me back the prudish Hermione who blushes at the mere hint.

- 'He's a really good kisser', I say. 'I pass over the spicy details'.

- 'Then enjoy it', Hermione says smiling.

She's got completely mad.

- 'Hermione', I say, 'do you feel fine?'

- 'Very fine', Hermione answers, blooming.

Hermione? Hermione!

- 'What's happening?' I say, holding back my giggles.

Giggles are Pansy's exclusive propriety.

- 'It's Ron', she says feverishly.

Oh, that's not true! I've been complaining about my poor life, while the unbelievable has happened!

- 'Yes', I encourage her.

- 'Yesterday, we went to watch over the charms corridor, as every Wednesday', Hermione starts. 'And then…'

- 'And then?' I ask, overexcited.

- 'Well, at some point, he made the statue of the one-eyed wizard fall, and I repaired it', Hermione says. 'Ron was happy that I had repaired his blunder, so he told me « do you know that I love you »…'

- 'And?'

- 'And I told him he was going to forget what he'd just told very soon', Hermione says. 'And then, he stopped walking, so I stopped too…'

- 'Stop this torture', I say, 'Go on.'.

- 'And he told me that no' Hermione says. 'And I, at that moment, I had forgotten the last things we'd said, I thought it wasn't important, that he'd just told it like that.'

Even if it meant giving another chance to coming to nothing.

- 'Then I asked him what', Hermione says. 'And then he told that me we haden't finished to inspect to corridor.'

Here it is, it came to nothing.

- 'So, he declared his love for you and you missed it', I sum up.

- 'Yes', Hermione says, pouting a little. 'But two seconds letter, he grabbed my arm and he… he…'

- 'He…?' I repeat impatiently.

- 'He kissed me', Hermione finished, looking radiant.

YEEEAAAHHH !!

- 'YEEEAAAHHH!!' I yell.

I should say what I think more often, it does me good…

- 'You seem as happy as I am', Hermione says brightly.

- 'Maybe more', I say. 'So, what happened after that?'

- 'Well…', Hermione starts.

Please, don't tell me they've stopped there!

- '…We…', Hermione carries on. 'We carried on with the inspection and came back.'

Yes, they have.

- 'And?' I ask, worried.

- 'Well… This morning, I joined Harry and Ron who were going down to the great hall', Hermione tells. 'And Harry at that point Harry left to say hello to Ginny. So Ron and I were alone, we said hello, we looked at each other, and then… I don't know what had got into me… I kissed him. Only two seconds. Then Harry and Ginny, who hadn't seen a thing, joined us.'

- 'Did you kiss at any other point?' I ask.

- 'Well… Before the transfiguration lesson, he rushed towards me to ask me whether you'd succeeded', Hermione explains. 'And he was really glad you did, and then… Well… A third time.'

- 'So we can say you're officially going out together', I say.

- 'Except that you're the only other person who knows about it', Hermione says.

- 'That's the next step', I say.

- 'I think so', Hermione answers. 'We should go and have lunch.'

- 'Yes', I say.

--

During the lunch, I keep watching Ron and Hermione discreetly, which is not easy with Pansy, who's on the verge of declaring her love for my ex-boyfriend to be, and the ex-boyfriend to be in question, who's sitting in front of me playing footsies with me.

Careful, they're talking at the Gryffindor table, Ginny's just looked up suddenly, Ron and Hermione must have said something that could only imply that they had kissed, because Potter, him, hasn't moved.

Ginny looks from Ron to Hermione, a widening smile on her face. Ron and Hermione seem quite embarrassed and Potter keeps eating his potatoes.

Suddenly, Ginny looks at me and moves her head forward questioningly.

I nod in agreement slowly, smiling.

At the Gryffindor table, an overexcited Ginny hops on her seat.

Ron, Hermione and Potter are looking at her, looking surprised. Realizing her weird behaviour, Ginny calms down straight away, keeping her radiant smile on her face.

Draco turns round toward the Gryffindor table.

I realize at last that I have a blissful smile on my lips.

Draco looks at me and frowns slightly, questioningly.

I shrug discreetly.

Ron's just left the table, I wait for him to go out of the great hall before leaving myself. Draco looks disappointed that I push his foot back.

So am I, but I'm not showing it.

Once in the hall, I run after Ron up the stairs.

He does an about-turn, looking surprised.

- 'Malorie?' He starts. 'What's up with…'

He can't finish his sentence : I've just thrown myself into his arms.

- 'I'm so proud of you', I say.

- 'Do you…?' Ron starts, transfixed.

I release Ron at last.

- 'Hermione told me, yes', I say.

- 'Oh', Ron says, sounding embarrassed. 'Actually I was quite hoping that she would… This way I can ask you what I should do…'

What? No, Ron, please… That's not what you have to say, you have to say that you're very happy to go out with Hermione.

- 'Do you remember when you went out with Lavender?' I ask.

- 'Yes', Ron answers.

- 'Well, that's exactly the same', I say.

- 'So, when she'll meet me later to get ready for the Hogwarts Express departure', Ron says, 'I should…'

I just can't be related to this idiot.

- 'Kiss her, yes', I say, a wide smile on my face.

- 'That's great', Ron simply says, sounding sincere.

Wonderful.

- 'Well', Ron says. 'Now I've got to fetch my bag, I've forgotten it.'

Ron moves away.

It's going to work, it's going to work! I have to be optimistic. Ron and Hermione are going out together. They have to tell it now… They're going to manage that.

Aren't they?


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12: Eighth day: Dumbledore's statue. **

I'm living memorable seconds, this is a long-awaited moment, a glorified moment. These are the wonderful seconds every students in the world are waiting eagerly for: the seconds of wait before the ringing of the bell ending the last lesson of the schooling!

I tidy up my bag at top speed and shout happily with the other students.  
I go out of the room in the middle of the line. Once out, I spot Draco staring at me, not bothering to hide a charming smile.

Except that… He can't do that. There are students around us.

Miraculously, nobody notices it. The students are too busy letting their joy out.

Discreetly, I let the students behind pass me, and run away in the opposite direction.

As I expected, Draco joins me quickly.

- 'But you're mad!' I yell. 'What was that square playboy smile you've given me in front of everybody?'

Square playboy! I don't think he's going to like that.

Draco's smile disappears from his face.

Here it is, too bad for me.

- 'They'll end up knowing it', Draco retorts coldly. 'It's no point hiding.'

- 'Yes it is, because if the other students find out, they're going to lynch me', I cry out.

- 'The Hogwarts Express leaves tomorrow', Draco says. 'And, I'll protect you.'

He… He… I'm going to fly into his arms!

- 'Stop it please', I say calmly. 'There's no question of saying anything to the others. Hermione and Ron already know because of you, that's more than enough.'

- 'What's going on between the two of them?' Draco asks.

Right now, we're talking about us, is that ok with you?

- 'Why are you asking me that?'

- 'You and the Weasley girl are strange when you're with them', Draco remarks.

Shall I tell him? He may ruin it all, he's still Draco Malfoy, I shouldn't forget that.

- 'The Weasley girl is called Ginny', I say furiously. 'And she's my cousin!'

If I'm lucky, he will have forgotten his question.

- 'OK, then why are you… my Love, and Ginny so acting so strangely toward Ron and Hermione?' Draco asks, putting his charming smile back on his face.

…

Hem… Hem… Hem…

I'm broken, somehow.

Hem… Hem… Hem…

I think I'm working again.

Hem… Hem… Hem… He called them by their first names and… Hem…Hem

Broken again, call a breakdown lorry!

Hem… Love! Love ! He c-a-l-l-e-d me my LOVE!

Obviously, I've stayed transfixed several seconds.

- 'Malorie?' Draco asks kindly. 'Are you OK?'

Hem… Hem…

- 'You should warn me before saying those kind of thing', I say. 'I feel as if I'd just gone down to Hell.'

Or rather gone up to the Heaven.

- 'You'll never stop', Draco reproaches me, keeping his smile on his face. 'I'm trying to be nice, and you won't stop…'

You wouldn't believe how much I'd like to stop, to trust you…

- 'You know perfectly well that I won't stop', I say. 'You see now that we can't show ourselves together in front of the other students. I'd ruin all our practice sessions.'

We should have one right now actually, here, now.

- 'I'd rather…' Draco confesses.

- 'Listen', I interrupt him. 'I understand that it would suit you that we told it now, for your trial. But we really don't have to. When I'll be in HLS, we'll send each other fake love letters, and you'll just have to show them to the Magengamot to prove them that you have a girlfriend.'

Draco stays impassive.

- 'If you want', Draco says, looking serene. 'But think about it.'

Who would like to confront Pansy?

- 'Right, we're going to be late for the feast of the four houses', I say.

- 'Wait', Draco says, wearing his smile again.

YEAH!

- 'What?' I ask, pretending to be surprised.

You want to kiss me? Do you? You do, don't you?!

- 'It's been seven hours since we've last kissed', Draco says, wearing his lovely charming smile back. 'I'm missing it.'

I'm going to faint… Draco will be able to catch hold of me!

I stay still, displaying no feelings on my face.

Draco clutches my waist.

Grrrr…ih…ih…! I can't believe it, I'm giggling in my thoughts!

- 'You could at least stop displaying this depressed face', Draco says. 'I know perfectly well that you were waiting for this as much as I was.'

How can you know, are you a legilimens? Oh, that can't be true, what if he really is legilimens? … Calm down, he's bluffing, he's saying that to provoke me! … I hope he's not a legilimens!

- 'And what makes you believe this?' I ask calmly.

- 'Well, you could push me back after a few seconds', Draco says. 'You take the most of it for several minutes instead.'

I've been unmasked! What should I do? Will I have to push him back after three seconds next time?

- 'If that's what you want, that's fine with me', I say in a neutral voice. 'From now on, I'll push you back after the first seconds.'

NNOOOO! I don't want to!

- 'No', Draco explains, his smile disappearing. 'That's not what I want, on the contrary.'

He puts his smile back on his face and pulls me closer to him.

Please, make up your mind! I can't take any more.

- 'I said that to tease you', Draco explains. 'In fact, I perfectly know you're forcing yourself to play the perfect girlfriend. I wonder how you can manage to overcome your disgust.'

I bite my lips slightly to hide a smile.

I have to control myself better that this… My hormones, shut up!

- 'How can you hold me in your arms?' Draco asks, amused by the smile I'm trying to hide. 'We're often stuck together, I love falling asleep with your smell on me, but you, you must spend hours in your shower, trying to wash my smell out…'

Suddenly, I grab Draco around his neck and pull his face towards mine.

What am I doing now? I… I… I've just kissed Draco!

Suddenly, I feel a wall against my back.

Draco's blocked me between him and the wall! Hurrah! …

But his hands are starting to get more and more inquisitive, aren't they?

He must think I'm opened. Considering how I'm holding him against me, that's not surprising.

I should remember to calm down too.

Another day.

Those wizard's robes are bloody annoying, they're not very convenient.

He's still hesitating a little… He turns around the Bimbos but doesn't touch them.

His hands get lower… upper… and…

BIMBOS !

--

An hour later. I've never appreciated that much the fact that the corridors are empty in this part of the castle.

Draco's stopped kissing me, he sticks his forehead onto mine.

- 'Tell me, what did I tell you again?' Draco asks, biting his lower lip. 'If it makes you be like that every time, I absolutely have to remember it.'

Can't I kiss him again now? He's so cute and so open just now…

- 'This time we're really going to be late in the great hall', I say.

- 'We don't have to go', Draco says. 'Gryffindor's won again, anyway. And the common room will be empty soon.'

Oooohhh, the common room, its armchairs, its coaches… its dormitories!

- 'Except that if we're both missing, I know some people who're going to suspect something', I say.

- 'And you don't want them to know, of course', Draco says.

Draco gives me an adorable little kiss and moves away from me.

No, not yet!

- 'Who goes first?' Draco asks wearily.

- 'I will', I say.

I move aside and walk quickly away. As soon as I've passed the bend in the corridor, I start running.

Don't ask me why I'm running, I darned don't know, I'm trying to get rid of that.. .thing… which is going to make me crazy.

At that point, I let you cogitate.

--

I enter the great hall. As every year, it's decorated in the Gryffindor colours.

How can they win every time? The teachers are favouring the Mini-Phoenixes, they gave them I don't know how many points for having fought against the Dark Lord. That wasn't even part of the curriculum. If it were, they should have told us, I'd have gone with them… No, just kidding.

Almost all the students are here.

So is Draco.

I sit down next to Millicent, in front of Draco, hoping I'm going to be disturbed by a foot soon.

Here it is!

I glance at the winner's table. Hermione and Ron are very close to each other, yet, they're trying not to look at each other and they look a bit awkward.

For a change.

Ginny seems to be holding back several giggles while looking at them. And Potter doesn't seem to notice anything. Loony's sitting with them, she stares at the couple very attentively. To sum up, only Potter hasn't understood a thing.

I'll still have to grab Hermione or Ron, I want to know what has happened since lunchtime

The dishes arrive on the table.

- 'Do you want some potatoes?' Pansy asks, sitting right next to Draco.

- 'Thanks', Draco answers, while Pansy's serving him.

At the Gryffindor table, I can see Ron eating properly.

A miracle.

Obviously, he's making an effort to start talking with Hermione who, too, seems to speak with difficulty.

A miracle.

Ginny's choking. And Potter seems, at last, to understand that something suspicious is happening.

A miracle.

Ginny calms down progressively. Ron and Hermione seems to be talking to each other in sentences of two or three syllables. And Potter gets his idiot I'm-bearing-the-weight-of-the-world-on-my-shoulders-so-I-don't-notice-what-you-simple-mortals-do-a-foot-from-me look back.

While our two slugs are billing and cooing in their own style, at the Gryffindor table.

At the Slytherin table, Pansy's started using her charm in the most pathetic way I've ever witnessed. I've just noticed she's wearing the most fixed skirt she owns, understand shortest, and the most plunging neckline I've ever seen. And since I've been living with Pansy for almost seven years, I perfectly know that this isn't her Bimbos' real size… There must be a pair of socks somewhere, of an inflation charm.

If it's an inflation charm, you need to be careful, Pansy's not very gifted for magic, it could go off!

- 'Draco', Pansy giggles.

What if I asked her?

She'd stop trying to pick my boyfriend up.

- 'Do you mind if I write to you this summer?' Pansy asks.

Yes, I do!

- 'Well', Draco says. 'Someone may mind…'

Yes, precisely, I do mind!

- 'Who?' Pansy asks, suddenly on the verge of tears.

Draco glances at me furtively.

- 'Did you notice?', Millicent says hastily, 'This is exactly the same dessert than last year.'

- 'Yes', I add. 'The elves didn't over-exert themselves.'

Millicent, you've just saved me, you haven't realized, but you've just saved me… Though, "haven't realize"… I'd have to watch Millicent closely.

- 'They over-exert themselves less and less', Millicent says. 'That must be because the mudblood is giving them stupid ideas.'

- 'Yes, that's why', Draco carries on. 'I wonder where she found the time… with those N.E.W.Ts and… the rest.'

Draco looks at the dish right in front of me and points me the way out with a head movement.

He wants us to go out?

- 'At any rate', Draco says. 'The potatoes weren't that good, they're giving me a stomach cramp…'

Draco stands up and leaves the room.

- 'For once', I say once he's out, 'I agree with Malfoy, the potatoes weren't good, I've got a really bad stomach ache.'

I stand up too, and leave.

That's discreet, really…

He's going to want to tell the others that we're going out together? Isn't he? I'm sure he is, why would he have asked me to go out otherwise? Maybe to… No, I shouldn't dream too much, he'd never ask me to leave the great hall for that!

- 'Malorie!' Draco calls.

I do an about-turn, Draco's half hidden behind the new Dumbledore's statue. I walk toward him.

- 'What's up with you?' I ask in a low voice. 'What's so urgent?'

Draco beckons me to move closer to him.

Once I'm two feet from him, I ask :

- 'So?'

- 'Nothing', Draco answers, a smile on his face.

He pulls me behind the statue and I feel myself going to heaven!

And what if he did ask me to go out of the great all for that!

He's become more self-confident since this morning, he's not hesitating any more.

--

Ten minutes later, Draco's sped up.

And I'm far from complaining.

But, of course, since we're in the castle's entrance hall, we can't really do anything special.

Although Draco seems to have completely forgotten that we're only hidden by Dumbledore's statue.

Suddenly, the door of the great hall opens, and a crowd of students walk through it.

S.

I push Draco back slightly.

- 'They won't see us', Draco says in an adorable voice, huddling up to me even more.

He's right after all.

As a precaution, I pull Draco farther behind the statue, without letting go of him.

The hubbub of the students grows louder. Obviously there's something blocking the flow. I can hear Pansy squawking.

Draco seems to appreciate me voluntarily blocking myself between him and the statue.

He should really think about calming down, because here, the statue could…

- 'Push off, it's falling!' Somebody yells in the entrance hall.

Suddenly, I feel myself being pulled backwards with the statue.

I land painfully on the statue which has fallen on the floor, Draco's on me.

- 'Are you OK?' Draco asks.

- 'Yes', I say. 'Stand up, quickly!'

Draco stands up and helps me up.

I look around us, half the students are staring at us, looking flabbergasted.

The entrance hall is full to bursting. In the stairs, students have stopped to watch the scene.

- 'You bitch', somebody yells in an hysterical voice.

Pansy.

- 'How could you!' Pansy yells, walking through the crowd, which has suddenly become still and silent.

Millicent's closely following Pansy.

- 'Pansy', I start in a sorry voice.

- 'You…. You knew I… I…!' Pansy loses her temper. 'It was you? The girl he was talking about, it was you?'

Facing Pansy is not an easy task, doing it in front of a half of the students is even more laborious.

- 'Pansy', Millicent says calmly. 'Everybody's watching you.'

- 'I don't give a damn!' Pansy cries out. 'I want everybody to know, Malorie Moon is a bitch who betrays her best friends!'

That's violent!

- 'Pansy!' Draco cries out. 'You're wrong', Malorie was feeling so guilty toward you that it was making her sick. Why do you think we were hiding?'

What a good liar! … We're two of a kind, in a certain way.

- 'Draco…' Pansy squeals, starting to cry.

Oh no, please don't!

- 'Pansy', I say kindly. 'I'm sorry, I didn't want to hurt you.'

Pansy cries more than ever.

- 'But I thought you two hated each other', Theodore Nott says, coming into view. 'You were always fighting.'

- 'Well…' I say.

- 'Love can't be rationally explained', Millicent concludes, a smile on her face.

Pansy's tears become twice as strong.

Look, Millicent doesn't seem very surprised, I knew she'd understood something.

-'That's the end of an era', Theodore says regretfully. 'Hogwarts has just lost some of its charm…'

I look discreetly to my right. There's a Mini-Phoenix meeting. Only Ron's missing.

I look at Hermione subtly, she seems unable to take her banana-shaped smile off. Ginny's amazed, almost frightened, she turns round to Hermione and seems a little reassured, but even more surprised.

I move slowly backward in order to make off. I collide with Draco.

Understanding I'm fleeing, he moves away too, and I follow him. The students let us make off without a word, they're only sniggering between themselves, except for Pansy, who's still crying.

Suddenly, I collide with Draco again.

I look up to see what has made him stop.

It's Ron.

Oh no, one public revelation is enough for me, Draco. Ron's looking elsewhere anyway, he seems on the verge of bursting out, but he's looking at the floor.

Draco moves forward carefully, he has to pass Ron to go out.

- 'Malfoy', Ron calls suddenly.

No, no!!

Draco turns back.

I barely had time to see the fist which has just punched my Draco on the temple.

- 'Ron!' The Mini-Phoenixes yell.

I go and stand between Ron and Draco.

- 'Stop it!' I yell at Ron.

The Mini-Phoenixes come to pull Ron backwards while he's trying to rush on Draco through me.

For once, Potter's useful, he's holding Ron back.

- 'I forbid you to touch my cousin', Ron yell.

No…no… half the students have just heard you… no more public revelations please.

- 'Ron, shut up', Ginny says furiously.

- 'He's spent years slating her', Ron yells. 'And now he wants… he wants to… I'm going to do him in!'

- 'Ron, calm down!' I yell.

And what's more, I've just called him Ron.

Ron notices I'm in front of him at last. He calms down and looks at me.

I move closer to him with caution.

- 'I completely handle what's happening', I tell him in a low voice so that Draco and the other students don't hear.

- 'No', Ron says. 'He… He's a Malfoy…'

- 'And I'm a Moon', I remind him. 'Do you really think Malfoy would do anything against the noble and respectable pure-blood Moon family?'

- 'Malorie', Ron moans.

- 'Calm down', I say. 'You're going to be in trouble.'

Potter, attentive to our conversation, releases Ron slowly. He stays still.

Then he looks at Draco again.

- 'Well, this is even crazier', Ron remarks suddenly.

I turn round quickly.

Pansy and Hermione are both leaning over Draco who's half knocked out.

- 'You're a coward, Weasley', Draco says in a weak voice. 'You attacked me in my back.'

- 'I called you to warn you', Ron says aggressively. 'You only had to be faster.'

I move toward Draco. To my horror, I notice that his blank face is already purple where Ron punched him.

- 'Ron really didn't miss you', Hermione tells Draco.

Pansy suddenly sits up and turns round to me.

- 'This is your fault', Pansy yells. 'You betray me, and then you incite your baboon cousins to hit Draco!'

I don't say a word and kneel down near Draco.

- 'Hermione?' I ask, frightened by Draco's face. 'What does he have?'

- 'Her… Hermione?' Pansy yells over me. 'Since when do Slytherins call mudbloods by their first names? You're a traitor! After what you've done to me, you've hidden that you knew the baboons! Aren't you ashamed? …'

Looking at Draco's haggard face, transfixed, I don't answer.

- 'He's awfully groggy, we need to take him to the hospital wing', Hermione concludes, sounding worried.

- 'I'm going to take him to the hospital wing', Pansy announces.

…

Mayday, mayday!! Blocked! Because of anger and rage, the brain has to be rebooted quickly before a disaster! Mayday!

Suddenly, I stand up and face Pansy.

- 'I'm going to take Draco to the hospital wing', I yell. 'Because he's MY boyfriend. And I forbid you, you stuffed guinea fowl, to call my cousins baboons, and I forbid you to call my best friend a mudblood.'

I lean over Draco, holding him up with my shoulder and I help him up with Hermione's help.

- 'Malorie', Draco says, a weak smile on his face. 'Let me punch Weasley.'

- 'No', I say coolly. 'You're far from being up to it, anyway.'

- 'Yes, but after', Draco insists bravely.

- 'No', I repeat.

- 'You're hard', Draco concludes in a whisper.

Draco manages to walk, helped by Hermione and me. Silently, we pass other students who haven't moved. Ginny and Potter have started to put the statue up again with help from some Mini-Phoenixes fans.

That will spare us quite a lot of trouble.

Pansy hasn't moved yet.

If she's waiting until she understands, she's still going to be there tomorrow.

Once in an empty corridor, my brain starts working again.

No…no… I can't have told… no… there were half the students. Oohh

- 'That can't be true', I moan slowly.

- 'I'm afraid it is', Hermione says sympathetically. 'Thanks for standing up for me.'

I really could have done without it.

- 'You're welcome', I say, feeling overwhelmed.

- 'It's the end of the year, that's not too bad', Hermione says, hesitating.

There are still a few hours before we leave.

- 'They're going to lynch me', I say.

- 'Avoid the others', Hermione suggests.

That's easy to say.

- 'By the way, Hermione', I say. 'What's new between you and Ron?'

- 'I knew there was something going on between the two of you', Draco says, waking up.

- 'Well, don't tell it', I order coolly. 'Get back to sleep!'

- 'Whatever you want, my love', Draco says.

Suddenly, I feel better, my heart's lighter. A feeling that butterflies are flitting in my stomach makes the heavy boules bowl that had settled there since the fall of the statue disappear.

- 'How did you call her?' Hermione asks, almost giggling.

Don't tell him, he could regret it.

- 'Answer Malorie's question', Draco says. 'What's going on between you and Weasley?'

- 'I think we're going out together', Hermione says.

- 'You're not sure of it?' I ask, disappointed.

- 'Well, we kiss each other often. And you, Ginny and Luna Lovegood know about it. I think Lavander and Parvati suspect something too… But until Harry has understood, I don't think it will be official.'

Well… We're not there yet.

- 'You can't leave without your leader', I remark.

- 'Yes, and no', Hermione says. 'It's because it's always been the three of us, so…'

- 'If you say so', I say.

We reach the door of the hospital wing. Hermione opens the door and calls the nurse.

- 'You've been fighting again!' Pomfrey cries out. 'I hoped I wouldn't see you during your seventh year, and here you are, turning up the day before you leave.'

Pomfresh leads us inside.

- 'Only one of you can stay, Miss', Ponfrey says, turning naturally toward Hermione.

- 'I'm here as Head Girl', Hermione says. 'That would be better if his girlfriend stays.'

Hermione's wearing a huge smile.

- 'But…', Pomfrey remarks. 'I thought Miss Moon and… didn't really get on.'

- 'Things change' Draco says, sitting down on a bed.

- 'Well', Pomfrey says. 'I have to leave you for a few minutes, I'm missing a potion.'

Hermione and the nurse leave at the same time.

Alone with Draco, this is not the right time here! And what's more, he's on a bed… Maybe I should make off, before getting caught by Pomfrey in a shaky position.

I sit down at Draco's bedside hesitantly, staying out of reach from him.

- 'I'm a bit groggy', Draco reminds. 'Did I really hear you yell that I'm your boyfriend in front of all the students?'

He's going to understand that I'm mad about him!!

- 'Pansy had really upset me', I explain impassibly. 'I told her anything that could make her shut up…'

- 'Oh, yes, that's true', Draco says. 'You also told her Hermione is your best friend and the Weasleys your beloved cousins. But I don't care that, I only remembered you saying for the first time that I am your boyfriend.'

And you're not upset about it? I mean, don't you care? Do you want to break up with me?

- 'Isn't it what you wanted?' I ask carelessly.

- 'Yes, of course', Draco says, a small smile on his face. 'Everybody knows. I regret that we were stopped behind the statue, but all in all, that's quite good…'

…

Mayday! Mayday, breakdown, mayday! Another disaster ahead.

- 'I've just lost all the respect there was for me in this school', I say angrily, 'And you, you're thinking about you bloody trial.'

- 'I wasn't thinking only about my trial', Draco defends himself. 'I want to be able to kiss you in front of them all, I don't want to hide in a corridor forever…'

Oh the little liar!

- 'What do you mean, forever?' I cry out furiously. 'I leave tomorrow!'

- 'That's not a reason', Draco replies.

- 'Are you making fun of me?' I cry out. 'How can you say things like that when you let Pansy try and pick you up…'

- 'Now you're the one who's making fun of me', Draco exclaims. 'You told me to be nice with Pansy.'

- 'I never told you that', I yell. 'I only said Pansy wanted me to reconcile you with her, I never asked you to do it.'

- 'Well, you should have told me', Draco yells. 'That would have spared me having to talk to her. I couldn't guess. You've never told me what you thought, you stay here, impassive, you're cold and you don't tell me what you want to.'

- 'You want me to tell you what I think?' I ask, shouting.

- 'Yes', Draco yells.

- 'Well…'

Get a grip on yourself, get a grip on yourself!!

- 'I think you don't need me right now, have a good night', I finish, still yelling.

Let's hope he hasn't noticed the hesitation.

I turn round and start walking toward the way out.

- 'Malorie!' Draco yells. 'Come back! Malorie!'

I hear a muffled sound. I turn round hastily.

Draco's fallen on the floor, he stands up with difficulty.

I rush toward him.

- 'You idiot', I say.

I help him up, but he pushes me back violently.

Draco sits down on his bed again, with difficulty.

I turn round furiously and move away again.

- 'Accio.'

I feel myself being suddenly dragged backwards and I land in Draco's weakened arms.

- 'You're wrong', Draco says, sounding insulted.

- 'Then why are you asking me?'

Draco leans towards me.

- 'Stop it', I say, getting out of his grip.

- 'Why?' Draco asks, sounding surprised.

- 'I'm tired', I say sincerely. 'I can't take any more. It's time for me to go to the HLS, because I'm exhausted of this playacting.'

Draco's face stays closed.

- 'I understand', he says.

The door of the hospital wing opens, and Pomfrey enters.

I move away from Draco's bed and go out of the hospital wing without a word.

- 'Hey!'

I turn round to see who's called me.

It's Potter.

- 'Hermione told me to lend it to you', Potter says, holding his invisibility cloak out to me.

- 'Ron and Hermione are worried about you', he adds .

I take the cloak.

- 'Thanks', I say. 'This is going to be useful. I'll give it back to you tomorrow.'

- 'I'm very attached to it', Potter confides, indicating his cloak.

Then I'm going to burn it.

Potter does an about-turn and moves away.

I slip the cloak on and head for the dungeons. I give the password and enters the common room. Almost all the students are waiting in the common room, watching the door. They seem surprised to see it open and close again without anybody entering the room. I climb the stairs up to my dormitory.'

Pansy's furiously leafing through books of curses.

I go back down carefully and go out of the common room.'

The seventh floor room, it shouldn't be too bad for a sleep, and for a torture, since I'm going to wonder all night whether Draco is ever going to kiss me again after what I've just told him.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13: Ninth day: Packing. **

Something sweet and warm on my lips wakes me up, I open my eyes.

My Draco!

I'm lying on a bed, Draco's stretching out right next to me, his face is an inch from mine.

- 'Good morning', Draco says, a kind smile on his face.

He's not sulking!

- 'Good morning', I answer. 'When did you leave the hospital wing?'

- 'Yesterday night', Draco says. 'Pomfrey treated me in a second.'

I sit up and look around us. We're in the seventh floor room, it was converted into a room.

What a wonderful situation, we should stay here forever.

- 'Millicent told me you didn't go to sleep', Draco explains.

He puts his hands behind his head, looking at me sitting on the bed.

Don't look at him, don't look at him.

I glance at Draco out of the corner of my eye.

My god, he's so sexy! And that smile… Good lord!

- 'How did you know I was here?'

- 'I went to see Dobby and the other elf… Winky', Draco explains. 'They told me the elves had seen you here, while they were cleaning.'

They didn't make much noise.

- 'I didn't know you had an invisibility cloak', Draco says, pointing the cloak I had left behind on the floor.

- 'It's not mine, it's Potter's.'

- 'Potter's?' Draco says, sounding surprised.

I can't be bothered to explain, I'm tired.

- 'Did you go in the common room with the cloak?' Draco asks.

- 'Yes, I did', I answer, yawning. 'I went out straight away, there was a crowd of Slytherins thirsting after some good crack to hurl at me. And Pansy was looking for a way to turn me into a cement mixer.'

Draco burst out laughing.

… I'm going to fly in his arms, there's no other way… Except it's the morning, and I'd better avoid coated kisses.

- 'I've spoken to the others', Draco says. 'I told them that anybody who would hurt my girlfriend would happen to be attacked by some of my Death Eater friends and some of my Order of the Phoenix friends. I think that their desire for bothering you has lessens somehow. But you should still be careful.'

- 'You still have Death Eater friends? And Order of the Phoenix friends?'

- 'No, I don't, but they don't know about it', Draco explains gloomily. 'And when they find out, you'll be gone.'

Hold me back! Tell me not to go!

- 'I have to go and pack my stuff', I say.

- 'Will we see each other again before you leave?'

Tell me to stay, go on!!

- 'We have to see each other…' Draco carries on.

To ask me to stay, or to leave?

- 'OK, I'll just go then', I say.

I get up, grab my things and head for the door.

- 'I'll wait for you in my dormitory', Draco states once I've reached the door.

Well well well! uh

I turn round, my hand on the handle, and look at Draco disapprovingly.

- 'Don't worry, I won't eat you, even if we're in my dormitory', Draco states.

I try to hide my smile.

Missed.

I push the handle and open the door slowly.

- 'Because we most probably won't be alone', he adds in a low voice.

I smile broadly, which Draco seems to find very funny.

At last, I go out, and reach the common room.

--

I give the password to the common room and enter cautiously. My wand is hidden in my sleeve. All the eyes turn towards me.

I've always been a discreet girl… No, just kidding.

Blaise looks away when I pass him. Nobody's talking, Theodore Nott is standing not far from me.

If it begins, he will be the leader of the boys, and Pansy the leader of the girls. Fortunately, she's not there.

I have to pass Theodore to reach my dormitory.

Beware, impact if five… four… three... two… one…

- 'Malorie', Theodore says, a slight cold smile on his face.

- 'Yes', I answer.

- 'Did you have a good night?'

- 'Yes', I answer once more.

- 'I didn't know you were a friend of the Head Girl's', Theodore states.

Don't panic, don't panic, missed… I'M PANICKING!!

- 'But I'm a very mysterious girl', I state casually. 'I'm not telling you everything.'

- 'I'd heard that the Weasleys were your cousins', Theodore carries on. 'But I never thought you were that close.'

Run Malorie, Run!

- 'You don't choose your affinities', I say politely.

- 'No', Theodore says in a lower voice. 'And obviously, an approaching trial can create new ones…'

Oh, that's not real! He's understood, the mini-Death Eater has got it, under cover, quick! It's OK Malo, calm down, calm down. What's the matter with it after all? Everybody will understand in the end anyway.

- 'You're ambitious, as a true Slytherin', Theodore says. 'Ambitious enough to forgive your… esteem for the students.'

The best way of defending yourself is to attack!

- 'Theodore', I say, putting my smile off. 'You're a nice boy, even though I'm sure you'd have joined the Dark Lord if he were still in power, just like your father. You've always wanted to be on the winning side. Only here, the winners are not the same, now the mini-Phoenixes, the repentant Death Eaters and the high ministry officials are the winners. I've got Mini-Phoenixes friends, a repentant Death Eater boyfriend, and I'm doing everything I can to become a high ministry official. A few years from now, I'll be one of the most influent people in this country, and the esteem I have for other students is certainly not going to stop me. Don't spit on me, you'd do the same… We're Slytherins, we'd all do the same.'

Look at the way I'm showing off!

Theodore stares at me without a word.

Speak… Well, speak calmly.

- 'You and Draco are a nice couple', Theodore states. 'It's less funny than when you were fighting, but yesterday's show was still very entertaining. In September I'll start a training course in economics at the ministry. So we're bound to see each other again.'

Exactly, we'll see each other, so we have to stay in speaking terms. Here, I'm leaving now… Carefully.

Theodore smiles at me politely, carefully making sure that the others can see him. But his eyes are sending me lightning.

Precaution number one: avoid bumping into Theodore alone.

I smile too, and open the door to the dormitories. I close it and lean against the door. I take a deep breath.

I have to leave Hogwarts as soon as I can. No, I'm wrong. I have to leave as soon as I can as far as I can from the Slytherins.

I climb the stairs. Once in front of the door of my dormitory, I stop, take another deep breath, my hand on the handle.

Be brave.

I open the door and go in.

Millicent and Pansy are packing.

- 'Good morning', I say.

- 'Good morning', Millicent answers.

Pansy's acting as if I wasn't there.

So much the better.

I pass them carefully, grab some clothes and enters the bathroom.

Before entering the shower, I spot Pansy's cosmetics.

If I take only a small quantity out of each product, she won't notice the change.

I take my shower and grab Pansy's beauty products one by one.

Cleaning the pores? We have holes on the face? … Oh?

Hair removal, shampoo, hair mask, manicure, foot care, deep teeth brushing, bending of the eyelashes, eyebrow's hair removal, make up…

What a terrible ordeal… How often do you have to do that to be clothes-conscious?

One hour later, I leave the bathroom at last.

Millicent and Pansy are still busy packing their suitcases.

I start tidying my things up too.

Pansy goes in the bathroom to grab her things and puts them in her suitcase, then leaves the dormitory.

- 'She'll get over it', Millicent says suddenly.

As long as she doesn't attack me.

- 'I hope so', I say.

What do I care about Pansy's mood? I won't see her again.

- 'I was suspecting you were Draco's new girlfriend', Millicent tells me, a smile on her face.

A smile?

- 'What made you think so?'

- 'The way you were both acting when you were in the same room', Millicent explains. 'The looks, the hidden smiles… And above all, you'd stopped provoking each other.'

You're not stupid, Millicent, are you?

- 'And then', Millicent carries on. 'You weren't worrying about the HLS any more, while you'd been obsessed with it all year.'

It didn't prevent me from being accepted… unfortunately.

- 'You know', I say. 'That's not really… true… Malfoy and me.'

- 'Theodore and I talked about it, he told me that for Draco, it was because of his trial', Millicent explains. 'And for you, he thinks this has something to do with you mother coming at Hogwarts.'

- 'How does he know my mother came?' I ask, amazed.

- 'Nothing can escape Theodore in that school.'

Obviously.

- 'Did you make that statue fall down on purpose?' Millicent asks.

Yes, of course, I just love falling out with Pansy!

I shrug and close my first full suitcase.

If I say no, she'll deduce that I'm in love with Draco… If I say yes, Draco will deny it.

- 'You won't have to act much longer', Millicent says. 'Draco's staying at Hogwarts this summer, and you're going to study abroad. Would you stay in England, you could have seen each other, but now…'

Sniff… Sniff… Alas! … Sniff…Sniff.

- 'That's lucky', I say, a smile on my face. 'Imagine, having to act Draco Malfoy's perfect girlfriend.'

Sniff.

- 'You must be spending your time fighting each other', Millicent says, smiling.

There are compensations.

- 'Yes, but that's such a change', I say.

Millicent smiles at me, looking amused.

- 'I'll go and eat', she states. 'Breakfast will be served soon.'

- 'Enjoy your meal', I say while Millicent leaves the room.

At least there's a Slytherin who doesn't want to cut my throat.

My things are packed up in my suitcases in a few short minutes. I rush one last time into the bathroom, tidy myself up as much as I can, and leave the dormitory. I go down to the common room, which is empty now, and stop here for a second.

He must have gone to have breakfast like the others.

I make a step toward the boy's dormitory hesitantly.

I don't even know which dormitory he's in.

The boy's and the girl's dormitory are paired, logically, the seventh year boys' dormitory should be paired with the girls' one.

I reach the supposedly door to the boys' dormitory and open it.

Draco's turning his back to the door, leaning over a trunk.

Suddenly, he does an about-turn, his wand pointed right at me.

- 'Sorry', he says, recognizing me.

He lowers his wand and I enter the dormitory.

- 'You fear you might be attacked?' I ask, a sadistic smile on my face. 'Whom are you afraid of? Pansy?'

No no no! Why do I always have to speak to him like that?

- 'No, Zabini… Among others', Draco confesses.

- 'Among who else?' I ask in a mocking voice.

Draco smiles at the tone of my voice.

- 'I don't need to bother you with it', he says, moving closer to me.

He's moving closer, at last… I was starting to think he'd never!

- 'Have you eaten?' Draco asks.

- 'No', I say. 'I'm going to go to the kitchens before I leave, I want to see Winky.'

Draco stops three feet from me, while I'm blocked against the door.

This could give him some ideas… At least I hope so.

- 'Why are you packing?' I ask.

Draco turns towards his suitcases and moves closer to them.

Nooo, stay next to me.

- 'I can't stay in a dormitory', Draco says. 'MacGonagall is going to give me a private apartment.'

A private apartment? With a fireplace? So that I can come an visit you secretly?

He grabs a pile of clothes on his bed and puts it in his open trunk.

I'm going to have to move forward, we're so far from each other, we won't be able to do anything special and my scouring would have been useless.

-'How often should we write to each other in your opinion?' I ask, moving slightly forward.

- 'I don't really know', Draco says, looking at me. 'Let's say, we should write one letter a week each, which will make two letters a week.'

- 'I wonder what I'm going to tell you in those letters', I say.

- 'Anything you want', Draco says, smiling. 'But try not to insult me though. We're supposed to be madly in love with each other.'

Supposed? As far as I am concerned, I'm not only supposed to.

- 'I'm going to join you until the platform in Hogsmeade', Draco states. 'It would be good if we kissed in front of everybody.'

It would be good if we kissed, here… now… right now.

- 'If you want', I say. 'I'm already half dead anyway.'

Draco burst out laughing.

Kiss me!

- 'You're exaggerating a little bit Malorie', he says.

- 'Not that much', I say.

- 'I could also come with you on the platform in London', Draco suggests. 'So that the other HLS students understand that you already have a boyfriend.'

That would be great.

- 'They don't need to know, they won't testify at your trial', I say coolly.

- 'I don't know', Draco says. 'As a precaution, maybe I should come.'

Yes, come!

- 'Don't bother', I say.

Draco smiles feebly.

- 'Well, I'm going to have breakfast', I say in a casual voice. 'We'll see each other quickly on the platform then.'.

Here, if you've understood me correctly, this means this is your last chance to kiss me properly.

I turn round to leave.

Stop me!

- 'Malorie wait', Draco calls me.

YEAH.

- 'Yes', I say, turning round.

- 'Won't you say good bye to me?' He asks, a charming smile on his face.

- 'We'll say good bye on the platform.'

You stupid girl, fly into his arms!

Draco smiles even more.

- 'We won't have much time', he says. 'And there will be a lot of people.'

Great, you agree with me! Now come and kiss me.

Draco stays still. Then he holds his hand to pull me toward him.

- 'Come and say good bye to me', Draco orders.

Coming!

- 'We don't really have to do it now', I say, moving slowly forward.

Shut up Malorie.

I stop, three feet from Draco.

- 'Yes we have', Draco says, smiling. 'Because I want to.'

Whatever you want.

- 'Do you really think I'm going to follow your orders?' I say calmly.

Draco grabs my waist.

- 'Wait', he says.

No, we won't wait for anything, you kiss me now!

- 'What?', I ask.

- 'I'm trying to remember that thing I told you yesterday night before the four houses feast', Draco explains, nibbling his lower lip slightly.

What thing?

- 'I can't remember it', Draco says, frowning. 'That's a shame, I'd have loved you jumping on me again.'

You're going to have to say something, or we'll still be there tomorrow… What am I talking about, I want us to be still there tomorrow.

- 'So, Malfoy', I say. 'Make up your mind or let me go.'

Draco reacts at me calling him Malfoy.

- 'I'm sorry', Draco says. 'I didn't want to delay you.'

At last!

Slowly, Draco moves away from me and releases my waist.

What? NO!

Draco stops three feet from me and looks at me, smiling sadistically.

He wants me to get crazy or what?

Suddenly, I start sniggering.

- 'So, Moon', he says. 'We'll meet on the platform.'

- 'Yeah', I say cynically. 'That's right.'

But why have I called him Malfoy?

- 'Do you know you're very annoying in your own way?' I say.

What am I talking about.

- 'Why?' Draco asks, still smiling sadistically. 'Would you have wanted me to kiss you?'

Yes.

- 'No', I say, imitating his smile.

Suddenly, I move forward Draco, and… Kiss him. I let go of him just as suddenly.

- 'Bye, Draco', I say.

I move away from him. Suddenly, Draco's hand closes itself on my wrist. I look at Draco again.

- 'Do you know you're very annoying in your own way?' Draco says.

He leans over me quickly.

Hurrah.

Happiness, happiness, when you're holding us… And here is one inquisitive hand, one!

And here are two inquisitives hands, two!

And three! … No, he doesn't have three hands… It's only that I've started too.

How do you unbutton this shirt?

Draco makes us do an about-turn. Then he removes his lips from mine, but doesn't release me. Draco makes me fall over backwards.

His bed!

He leans over me.

…

For a few seconds, we stare in each other's eyes without moving.

…

Then, slowly, Draco kisses me again.

Quickly, Draco speeds up.

That's the fourth hand!

I have to manage getting rid of this bloody shirt.

… Here it is.

Draco stops kissing me and looks at me, smiling.

- 'You're faster than me', he says.

He hasn't taken anything off me yet.

- 'Shut up', I say, lifting my head to catch Draco's lips.

We speed up even more.

--

Ten minutes later, I'm still wearing all my clothes, and Draco is bare-chested.

My good, this isn't possible, we're not making progress here! It can be good to make things last, but here, we can't afford this luxury.

Suddenly, we hear footsteps behind the door.

Theodore, Blaise, Vincent and Gregory burst into the room.

Draco stands up quickly and draws the curtain of his four-poster before taking back his position.

Well, yes… But no. It's out of the question that we do anything with the others right next to us.

I push Draco back slowly.

- 'We'll meet later', I say.

Draco kisses me again, trying to prevent me from sitting up.

I push him back once more, and he eventually let me sitting up. I draw the curtain and get out of the bed.

- 'Hi', I tell the amazed boys.

I head for the door, but I'm held back, and pulled backward by my wrist once more.

Draco stands up too.

He's so beautiful, bare-chested like that… Well, he's not tremendously hefty, right enough though.

Draco kisses me once more. I push him back so that I can leave the dormitory before dying stabbed by the dagger looks of the seventh years

I open the door.

- 'Have a nice holidays', I tell them all in a joyful voice.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14: Farewell, Hogwarts.**

I close the door of the kitchen behind me and head for my usual remote table. A few seconds later, Winky joins me, holding a huge tray on her head.

The new fashion, this must kill neurons… Pansy must be really fashionable.

- 'Good morning Winky', I say.

- 'Good morning, Miss', the elf answers, putting her tray on the table.

- 'Would you have breakfast with me?' I offer.

Obviously she's going to refuse.

- 'I have to keep working', Winy says.

Here it is… Use all your power of persuasion, Malorie.

- 'The houselves task is to make their masters happy, isn't it?' I ask.

- 'Yes, it is.'

- 'Students are sort of the masters of the elves at Hogwarts, aren't they?'

- 'Sort of.'

- 'Well, I don't want to eat alone, that would make me sad', I say.

Winky freezes in front of me.

- 'Thus, I should eat with you so that you could be happier', Winky concludes.

You've got it all.

- 'Wonderful idea', I say. 'That would definitely make me happier.'

Winky smiles at my trick. She sits down in front of me.

I start eating from my bowl of cereals.

- 'I'm going to miss you, Miss', Winky says, sounding overwhelmed. 'I'm going to be alone now.'

- 'Ginny will come and see you', I say. 'And there's Dobby.'

It's true, Dobby's so comforting… You only have to look at his outfit to be in a better mood.

- 'Hogwarts won't be the same next year', Winky insists.

- 'It might be your chance to take a fresh start, to forget Mr Crouch once and for all.'

Winky's hears bend down when I mention Crouch.

Now that I'm saying stupid thing, let's do it properly.

- 'And', I carry on, 'I think you could take advantage of it to unite with another houself.'

Out of surprise, Winky's eyes open wider.

- 'I think Dobby would quite like that', I say.

Winky looks at the busy elves. Dobby's hanging from a cupboard door. He waves at us in a friendly way.

A nice little elf, with a style to make Chanel and Dior green with envy. How could Winky be able to resist him? I wonder.

- 'Dobby's not a good houself', Winky says. 'He gets paid and he says bad things about his former masters.'

If only that was all that could be reproached to him.

- 'What does he say about the Malfoys?' I ask curiously.

- 'He says they are evil wizards who use dark magic', Winky explains.

- 'And about Draco Malfoy?'

Totally insignificant question, of course.

- 'He says he was whimsical', Winky says. 'That he was ambitious, and capable of anything to get what he wanted…'

In short, a Slytherin.

I swallow the last mouthful of my meal.

- 'I have to go now', I tell Winky, standing up. 'I was glad to meet you during my years at Hogwarts, and I'm sure we'll meet again.'

I'll find a way… Like sneaking secretly into Hogwarts during the next months… To see Winky, of course, only Winky.

Winky whispers profusely, reddening. Her eyes are slightly wet. I've got a funny little pang somewhere in my chest.

- 'and you know, that's not because he's not a perfect houself that Dobby's not a perfect elf for you', I say.

I don't know what I can say after that.

I take one step toward the way out.

Oh damn.

I do an about-turn, lean over Winky and hold her briefly in my arms. I turn round again and rush quickly toward the door. I barely have time to see the amazed look on the elf's face.

No, no… Above all, don't… Hold on… Too late!

I can feel tears running slowly on my cheeks.

Damn it, she's only a houself…

I've never cried that much in my life, I've become a real pisser lately.

I erase all trace of my tears while climbing the stairs.

The common room is crowded with students waiting with their suitcases. Traditionally, the Slytherin students wait for each other to go down together to the coaches.

A technique to look more impressive in front of the other students.

I open the door of my empty dormitory, and am violently hit by an old white crumpled feather duster. The old white feather duster happens to be, in fact, Miss Pimpernel.

- 'Still a male?' I tell her by way of a hello.

The owl hoots, I stick her under my arm and place her in her cage.

No, I wasn't going to forget her in the owlery, I would have fetched her… Well…

Her wound is completely healed now. I gaze at my luggage, piled up next to my bed.

Who would like some ache!? Who would like some ache!?

I grab the smallest suitcase and stick it on my back, holding its handle. I put the long strap of my bag around my neck, sticks my large trunk under my left arm, and Miss Pimpernel's cage's handle in my right hand, which is already holding the suitcase on my back.

Equipped with my luggage, I get down to the common room with difficulty, walking in the narrow and contorted corridors of the castle.

I must look really odd, I've got the shadow of a sumo.

In the common room, I put down my bags for a few seconds.

Maybe I should go down now, or after them. That would be more careful.

- 'Malorie!'

The slight hubbub caused by the students instantly dies down.

My Draco.

Draco moves towards me, cutting through the students and the suitcases, he's the only one who doesn't have any luggage.

- 'I'm coming with you', he says. 'You haven't forgotten, have you, my love?'

…

Hem… hem

I should calm down, he's already called me this once, I should be used to it now. Especially since here, he's doing it only to prove to the others that we are going out together.

- 'I'm going to help you to carry your luggage, my Love.'

… hem…hem…

No way, I'm not getting used to it.

Around us, students are looking at us as if we were muggles lost inside Hogwarts.

Draco leans over me.

- 'Theodore is telling everybody his theories about our couple', he explains in a low voice. 'Act as if we were madly in love with each other.'

What? Draco, there's something I need to explain to you.

- 'You're completely crazy', I whisper. 'We're already going to have to kiss in front of them…'

And kissing you annoys me so much, you have no idea…

Draco looks at me, a smile on his face, then kisses me very quickly on my lips.

A sob burst out in the room.

Pansy.

I look at Pansy, she's crying her eyes out. Next to her, Millicent is comforting her. Suddenly, Millicent stands up straight, she's looking at me discreetly.

- 'No tears', she mouths.

Millicent leans over Pansy again.

- 'Am I dreaming or has Millicent just told you that Pansy was pretending to be crying?' Draco whispers.

- 'You're not dreaming', I say, surprised too.

- 'Pansy', Draco says aloud. 'You've been my friend for such a long time, it would have been unhealthy for us to go out together.'

Because our relationship is the model of the healthy relationship everyone is dreaming about, isn't it?

- 'Well, shall we go?' Blaise asks everyone at large, sounding irritated.

- 'My love, I'm going to carry your trunk', Draco says.

He picks my heavy trunk up and looks for a way to hold it in his arms without breaking his back.

Ready? ... Go!

- 'Thanks, sweetheart', I answer. 'Could you take my owl too?'

Draco suddenly drops my trunk on the floor, he stands up straight quickly and looks at me in the eyes.

I've called him sweetheart! … I know everybody saw it, it's not worth repeating, but still… I've called him sweetheart!

- 'Of course', he says, a surprised smile on his face.

- 'Isn't that what you wanted?' I whisper, holding him out Miss Pimpernel's cage.

- 'Yes… It's surprising', he says, still smiling.

- 'I liked it better when they were hitting each other', a second year says with a haughty look. 'Here, I think I'm going to puke.'

Charming young girl… She's reminding me of somebody… But who?

Miss Pimpernel starts crying when Draco grabs her cage.

- 'Miss Pimpernel', I say in a sweet voice. 'Be nice to Draco, you're going to visit him often during the next months.'

The owl cries even louder, spreading her wings furiously.

- 'Poor owl', I whisper. 'I think I would react the same way if I were her.'

Well, yes, I would jump and shout… for joy.

- 'That's funny, but it's not the impression I got in my dormitory earlier', Draco says, smiling.

Really, you too?

- 'Only a misdemeanour', I say carefreely.

- 'Malorie, my Love', Draco says. 'You'll manage to drive me mad in the end…'

About me? I'm making you mad about me? Is that true, can I do that?

- '…I'll end up hanging myself' Draco carries on.

Oh no…

Most of the students have already passed the door, the seventh years leave in turn, grouped.

- 'Are you going to call me « sweetheart » again?' Draco asks in a low voice.

Do you like it?

- 'Sweetheart', I say in a carefree voice.

- 'When you say it this way…' Draco says gloomily.

But I can't say it another way, that would please you… And I can't… Sweetheart…

--

Blaise holds the door of the coach open so that all the students can climb in. Draco beckons me to climb first.

What a gentleman, my Draco.

- 'I understand why you pushed me back during the party', Blaise tells me. 'But you should have told me.'

- 'I'm sorry', I answer sincerely.

I climb inside the coach and Draco joins me and sits next to me. He puts his arms around my shoulders in an owning way.

I'm lucky we have to pretend being a couple in front of the others, otherwise I would have had to remove his arm.

I look around us, all the Slytherin seventh years are here together. They're speaking in low voices.

Usually, they yell in the coach, I'm really wondering what they could be talking about.

Pansy gives me a dark look.

- 'What was Blaise talking about?' Draco asks in a low voice.

- 'Nothing', I answer.

- 'Did he want to go out with you again?' Draco asks.

- 'Yes, he did', I answer.

Draco turns toward Blaise nastily.

A fit of jealousy? A fit of jealousy? Bring the Champaign, there's a chance he might have become attached to me!!

- 'It's really not important', I say in a low voice.

But why on earth am I reassuring him? If he's jealous, I should let him some time to imagine things.

- 'At any rate, you're going to wait until we're not going out together any more before dating another guy, aren't you?' Draco asks.

WHAM, take this in you face Malorie!

- 'I'll wait until the end of your trial', I say. 'Don't worry.'

Draco looks a little reassured.

Couldn't you have left me this hope?

- 'And you'd better do the same thing for your part', I say. 'If I ever learn that you sullied my name by cheating one me.'

Not to sully my name is of course my priority right now.

Draco smiles slightly.

- 'Don't worry', he says.

Pansy's still looking daggers at me.

What, we've understood you're an actress.

Pansy mouths an insult at me.

B… ? Are you kidding me? Pansy?

- 'Sweetheart', I say aloud. 'You'll send me a letter tomorrow, to tell me about your lonely life at Hogwarts, won't you?'

Draco looks at me, he's surprised.

- 'If you want', he says, quickly hiding his surprise.

I huddle up against Draco.

Thanks Pansy for giving me an excuse.

- 'Have I told you that you're going to drive me mad?' Draco whispers into my hear while I'm embracing him.

- 'After seven years, I'd have managed on the very last day at last', I say.

Draco bursts out laughing. The other students look at us, amazed.

- 'Are you crazy?' Theodore asks.

- 'No', Draco answers. 'It's only my wonderful girlfriend who's telling me kind things to make me laugh.'

It's me, I'm the wonderful girlfriend.

- 'Don't forget to write to me', Draco says. 'During each stop.'

- 'Yes', I say. 'Maybe even more often in fact.'

- 'I'm going to miss you so much', Draco says, hugging me.

Why? Why? Why does he have to say it now? And in front of everybody.

- 'I'm going to miss you too', I say in a sweet voice.

The coach suddenly stops. I can see the Hogwarts express outside, it's ready to leave.

I'm going to be murdered in this train, this is going to be the Murder on the Orient Express. And Draco won't even be here to defend me. And Hercule Poirot won't be here to elucidate my murder.

The students get off the coach, I head for the train with my luggage, but Draco stops me.

- 'Come', he says. 'I need to talk to you out of the way.'

To tell me what? Are you going to declare your love for me?

Draco drags me into an empty place, in front of the train. I can feel my heart beatings speeding up violently.

- 'There', he says. 'Everybody can see us here, and nobody can hear us.'

What… ? No…

- 'And what did you want to tell me?' I ask sharply.

- 'Nothing', Draco answers. 'But as a couple we must have things to say to each other in this kind of situation.'

…

- 'Shall I get a depressed face then', I say furiously. 'And I could start crying, appalled by our separation…'

- 'Don't take things this way', Draco answers calmly.

- 'I'm taking things the way I want', I answer. 'You know perfectly well that I'm sick of playing, even if those are the last minutes…'

- 'In the coach, I was under the impression that it didn't really annoy you', Draco says aggressively. 'You huddled up against me.'

- 'To upset Pansy who had insulted me', I answer.

And the worst of it is that it's true.

Draco looks at me fixedly.

- 'Here it is', he says after a while. 'Almost all the students are in the train, you're the last. And they're all watching us.'

ASSHOLE!

I check discreetly what he's said. In every compartments, faces are indeed pressed to the windows.

Many of them must be hoping for the same show than when Dumbledore's statue fell.

- 'And what's more, you're going to make me miss my train', I say.

I do an about-turn.

Draco grabs my wrist and pulls me towards him until we're stuck to each other.

Sweetheart… Don't hurt me.

- 'You're bloody annoying with your bad temper', he says. 'And that wouldn't really matter if you missed your train.'

- 'You want me to stay stuck in Hogwarts with you?'

Say yes!

- 'At least, there wouldn't be the risk of being caught in the dormitory', Draco says, smiling.

- 'Will you excuse me', I say in a carefree voice, 'I've got a train to board on.'

- 'Wait', he says. 'We have to kiss, and long enough for everybody to see us.'

- 'Wonderful', I say in a cynical voice.

Draco hugs me tightly and kisses me.

Hold back your tears.

--

A few short minutes later, Draco ends our kiss, but he's not releasing me yet. I'm not crying, but my eyes are slightly wet. Draco holds me against him, suddenly, he strokes my cheek.

Stop firing Malorie, clear off!

- 'It's a shame you're so aggressive', he says, looking at me in the eyes.

- 'Why do you say that?'

Drrraaacccooooooo!!

- 'I don't know', Draco says. 'Would you be less aggressive, I might…'

I'm going to burst out.

- 'You might what, Malfoy?' I ask violently.

- 'You're doing it again', he says calmly.

- 'You know what? You're the one driving me mad', I state.

I'm already disconnecting myself from everywhere.

- 'But what are you talking about?' Draco asks, sounding surprised. 'What have I done?'

- 'Nothing,' I say, annoyed. 'You're only being a stupid jerk.'

What have I just said? He might understand. Maybe I want him to understand, do I? … No!

I move away, but Draco stops me.

- 'Wait', he says, looking surprised, 'you have to explain to me.'

- 'There's nothing to explain', I say dryly. 'See you, Malfoy.'

I grab my suitcases, Draco takes my trunk and the cage. Without a word, we head for the train.

The train whistles, heralding the departure.

Draco helps me to bring all my suitcases up. Once I'm up with my luggage, Draco, who has stayed on the platform, asks me:

- 'So, will you explain?'

- 'No, I won't', I answer. 'You're giving me a headache.'

A second whistle rings out, and the train starts moving. Draco walks next to the train, in front of me, for a few seconds.

Suddenly, he grabs the handle and board on the train.

Are you coming?

Draco grabs me, kisses me, and releases me straight away.

- 'I'd have preferred a sweeter good bye', he says. 'And I wasn't lying when I said I was going to miss you.'

He does an about-turn and jump outside the moving train, leaving me here, like an idiot in the middle of my suitcases.

- 'I'm going to miss you too', I tell the empty space around me.

I hear footsteps moving toward me. I turn round. Theodore, Pansy, Vincent and Gregory arrive, looking nasty.

- 'Malorie!' A voice calls from behind me.

I do an about-turn, Hermione and Ginny are walking towards me.

- 'Would you come in our compartment?' Hermione offers.

I'm not dead yet.

- 'Yes', I answer, relieved.

Hermione and Ginny help me to carry my suitcases. Behind me, the Slytherins look terribly disappointed.

Hermione's leading the way, once we're far enough, Ginny whispers in my ear:

-'We weren't going to let them skin you alive', she says.

- 'Thanks', I say shyly.

Hermione opens a door. The compartment is already half full with mini-Phoenixes.

All things considered, I'll choose the Slytherins.

Besides Ginny and Hermione, there are Ron, Potter, Loony and Neville Longbottom, and Potter's owl which starts crying with mine as soon as they spot each other.

Ginny puts Miss Pimpernel's cage next to Potter's one, the birds' cries stop instantly, replaced by some sort of loving cooing.

Frightening.

Hermione tries to lift my trunk to place it in the luggage rack.

- 'Wait', Ron says. 'I'll help you Hermione.'

Ron stands up and puts the trunk in the rack.

Hem hem.

Once the trunk put away, Ron and Hermione give one another a half-embarrassed smile of complicity.

Adorable… or pathetic, I can't make up my mind.

I open my smallest suitcase and take out Potter's invisibility cloak. I hold it out to its owner.

Potter grabs it and inspects it minutely.

Drat, blast! I've forgotten to burn it.

- 'Thanks for having lend it to me', I say.

He answers with a slight forced smile, looking at Hermione and Ginny.

I'm not sure he had a choice.

Once all my suitcases are put away, I settle myself in a seat, in front of Longbottom, who's visibly terrified.

The nasty Slytherin is going to eat you, be careful.

- 'Charming sight', Ginny tells me. 'I found Malfoy almost romantic when we were watching at you outside the window.'

Potter turns round abruptly to his girlfriend.

I bite my lip to keep myself from bursting out laughing. Next to me, Hermione's having the same reaction.

- 'Fortunately there are appearances', I say. 'In fact it wasn't very romantic.'

Ron and Ginny are displaying the same sympathetic smile.

I'm bored of those appearances.

- 'You'll have to tell me', Hermione whispers to me.

- 'So will you', I answer.

- 'No need for that,' Hermione says in a low voice. 'We're still at the same point.'

At least the haven't moved backwards…

I look at Ron, smiling, he quickly looks away.

- 'Harry', Ron says. 'Will you come at my home this summer?'

- 'We'll see', Potter says. 'Right now I'm going to stay at Snuffle's, I don't want to leave him alone, he's still disorientated after what happened to him…'

- 'Snuffle?' I say. 'What's that, a dog?'

Ron, Hermione, Ginny and Potter give one another looks of complicity.

- 'Sort of', Hermione answers.

- 'Sort of', I answer. 'And don't ask questions…'

Hermione gives me an embarrassed smile.

What am I doing at the Mini-Phoenixes' again? … Oh, yes, I'm avoiding Murder on the Orient Express.

- 'Exploding snap?', Ginny offers.

--

Three hours later, we're finishing the third exploding snap game. I've found a way to make Longbottom believe I'm mad, and I've made Potter's eyebrows burst out.

My best deed of the day.

As for Loony, she seems to have noticed my being in the compartment at last.

Miss Pimpernel and her boyfriend have been released in the compartment at last, after numerous appeals in the form of strident cries. The two owls are billing and cooing in the luggage rack and nobody dares look at them. Potter seems disgusted by this situation.

Wonderful situation, then.

- 'Ron', Hermione says, 'we need to do an inspection.'

- 'Again!' Potter cries out. 'This is the third.'

Well, well, you stupid Potter, you're the only one who doesn't notice the look we all give each other when the love birds leave to do so-called inspections…

Ron and Hermione go out, avoiding carefully my mocking looks and Ginny's.

- 'Will you come home during the holidays?' Potter asks Ginny.

Even Potter is going to have a right to a sexu… love life during the holidays. While I, I won't have one, I don't even have holidays. Life is unfair, what did he do, hey? Well, he destroyed the Dark Lord, ended a terrible war, restored the order in the wizard community, saved the world in short… And then, I have… I have… managed to do something Saint Potter never managed, I put Ron and Hermione together… Yes! So yeah, no need to be the boy who lived to achieve feats… I'm raving, I should calm down… It's because of these bloody thrills… Draco… Draco…

- 'You should ask for Snuffle's permission before', Ginny says.

The dog's back. I don't care, I'm going to harass Ron on the first occasion to make him confess who that dog is. I'm getting crazy, that must be because of this thing rapping out in my head, rapping out this first name… Draco… Draco… Draco… And what if I set off the alarm signal of the train? I pinch Potter's broom and fly back to Hogwarts! Too bad for my studies, I'll be as my grand-mother wants, a nice housewife, married to a Malfoy to be worthy of my name, a man whom I'd be madly in love with, and who'd madly… hate me.

Draco… Draco…Draco… I should have tried to tell him I loved him, what do I care if he's not giving a damn about me? I'd have tried…

- 'I've already asked him' Potter asks. 'He agreed, but in the mean time, he's a little disturbed currently.'

- 'In other words, you took advantage of his unconsciousness to ask him whether your girlfriend could come at his place?' I ask.

- 'He was perfectly conscious', Potter defends himself. 'He was in St Mango, a little bit tired, and he called me James from time to time, but he was conscious.'

What can I answer?

- 'James? That's your father I believe? He thought you were your father and…'

Ooh.. Ooh… Ooh… My god… I'm beginning to understand…

- 'Sirius Black is alive', I say aloud.

Everybody turn to me.

- 'How do you know?' Potter says, surprised.

- 'Who do you think I am?' I say. 'Black was your godfather, he was wrongly imprisoned. He's said to be dead, but there wasn't a burial. I've heard your father and Black were great friends at Hogwarts. About the dog thing, I don't see the connection, but there must be one somewhere…'

- 'How do you know all this?' Potter asks, surprised.

- 'I'm a Moon, you stupid clot, nothing can happen in the wizard world without my family to know', I explain. 'My mother told me all this after Sirius Black's so-called death.'

Funny conversation, now I think of it again.

Potter looks flabbergasted.

I mean, even more than usual.

- 'Won't you say anything?' He asks mistrustfully.

- 'Nope', I say. 'Don't panic Potter.'

He looks sceptical.

- 'Don't worry', Ginny says. 'You can trust Malorie.'

- 'She's a Slytherin', Potter says, forgetting I'm right next to him. 'And she's going out with Malfoy.'

It's coming back… Draco… Draco… Draco… I should have told him… Maybe he'll be in London, on the platform, he'd said a vague word about it…


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15: Ninth day: Tonio Jones.**

Suddenly, the door of the compartment opens and Millicent appears in the doorway.

- 'Millicent?' I say, surprised.

- 'I just wanted to check that you were all right', she says. 'I'll go now, they're waiting for me…'

Why does she leave in such a hurry? Oh yes! The compartment is full of Mini-Phoenixes! I think I won't ever be able to hide my friendship with some of them any more… It's really… liberating, I've got the feeling I'm breathing for the first time of my life.

Millicent starts closing the door behind her, when Miss Pimpernel and her boyfriend suddenly fly through the door.

- 'Hedwig, come back!' Potter yells.

He passes me hurriedly and pushes past Millicent.

Whatever happens, I can't leave him alone with my owl, he's going to kill her!

I leap out of my seat and follow Potter.

Charming sight, people must think we're mad people who have just escaped from St Mungo. Although regarding Potter, it's true they could have kept him, a fight against the Dark Lord, it's surprising he managed to keep his mental faculties… Assuming he had mental faculties before, of course… Out of caution, they should still have scheduled him for a neurons transplant.

I keep running behind Potter, who's himself running behind the two feathered transsexual lovers.

Some compartment doors open as we pass, and we can see the heads of surprised students. The owls arrive at the end of the carriage at last. They enter the small room of the lady who gives candies out.

Potter stops in the room and I catch up with him at last. The owls are nowhere to be seen, all the windows are closed, and the second door, which leads to a separate compartment, is closed. Potter moves closer to the closed door to open it.

That's the way the owls managed, they opened this door, entered the next room, and closed the door behind them again… You wouldn't believe it, but owls are animals which everybody underestimates… Everybody except Potter, a god in our world, whose intelligence is reliable…

Potter presses the handle.

STOP! Wait a second, Hermione told me something about the place where the candy trolley is stored… What did she say? Oh yes, the room next to it is the compartment reserved for the prefects. A compartment which, right now, should be empty, except if two prefects decided to take advantage of an empty compartment…

- 'Stop', I say.

Too late, Potter opens the door and comes across…

Ron, bare-chested, lying over Hermione whose blouse is slightly opened. The two prefects cut short their impassioned kiss to look at the two intruders.

Hermione! What were you… ? Hermione! Ooohh, prudish Hermione, it's over… Had we arrived a few seconds later, I wouldn't have been the only shameless girl between us any more… It's a shame we interrupted them then.

After a few seconds of heavy silence.

- 'Have you seen Hedwig?' Potter asks, looking flabbergasted.

I burst out laughing, and pull Potter's sleeve.

- 'Leave them their intimacy', I say.

That's funny, Draco and I were more or less at the same point this morning.

… Draco… Draco…

I keep laughing and drag Potter, who's unable to walk by himself. Doors are still opening as we pass. One of the door opens, and I recognise the Slytherin second year who had said Draco and I made her feel like puking.

- 'And to say that they've been here for seven years', she says. 'I hope I won't go that mad.'

- 'You're already mad', a boy next to her answers.

This is crazy, those two kids remind me of two other people…

Once in our compartment, we see the owls, waiting for us, back in their luggage track. I help Potter to sit down on a seat.

- 'What's going on?' Neville Longbottom asks, frightened by my giggles.

Loony bursts out laughing at my mirth, which, as a result, makes me laugh even more.

I have to calm down. Stop laughing Malorie… This must be nervous.

Suddenly, Ron and Hermione, out of breath, enter the compartment.

- 'I didn't see anything', Potter tells them straight away.

- 'What is it you didn't see?' Ginny asks, sounding surprised.

- 'I'm proud of my cousin, he has a great body', I say at large.

Ron becomes scarlet.

- 'I didn't see anything', Potter repeats.

- 'I'm going to explain everything to you', I say.

It will be a backward explanation for a backward person.

- 'Ron and Hermione have been going out together for a few days, you're keeping up?'

Potter looks at me, amazed.

He hadn't understood yet… Ron and Hermione must be, in his opinion, randy devils. The desire to rush on each other overtook them, unable to resist the torrid atmosphere of the compartment reserved for the prefects.

- 'Everybody had more or less understood it, except you', I say. 'Still keeping up?'

Potter is coming to terms with what I've just said.

- 'I didn't see anything', he repeats.

- 'He's got it', I tell Ron and Hermione.

The two lovers sit down on the seat, looking at each other, embarrassed. Ron has slipped his shirt on inside out.

- 'We're almost there', Loony suddenly says.

Everybody stand up and get back their things, scattered here and there. Then the train stops in the station in London.

Draco! Draco! He might be here!

The students get off the train in the greatest mess. On the platform, I'm surprised to see, not my Draco…

Sniff.

But my (almost) complete family. My mother seems very embarrassed towards me.

Not very surprising, making the family turn up without warning, that's not very nice. I always need to prepare myself psychologically before family meetings, so here, without having been able to anticipate… Or to run away.

My two uncles are here, fortunately, they didn't bring their wives and my young cousins. They're talking with my grandfather, whose first name is Edgar. He's got some more white hair in his mop of hair that must have been jet-black in a bygone age.

My grandmother, Magda, is wearing a wide smile which spreads on her face when she sees me.

Yes, I know, Magda, Mona, Malorie... It's a tradition in the family, the first name of the girls must start with an M, my great-grandmother on the side of my grandfather invented that... The surname Moon can't be given to girls. At least to legitimate girls, thus, I inherited the surname Moon and the first name starting with an M... Hurrah for the pure-blood family...

I move away from the Mini-Phoenixes and move closer to the Moons, at a quite unconfident pace.

- 'We came to congratulate you', my grandmother says, a wide smile on her face

- 'For my admission to HLS?' I ask, surprised.

My grandmother burst out laughing.

I thought that was strange.

- 'About your new boyfriend', she says. 'Imagine if the two of you end up getting married. Malorie Malfoy, that sounds good.'

I noticed that too... Oops, I'm starting to be like them, a name freak.

- 'Grandmother', I say. 'I'm barely eighteen.'

- 'Your Grandfather and I got married right after we left Hogwarts', Magda says seriously. 'And we could invite the Malfoys to dinner. We could have a big party uniting the two families.'

Grandmother, please!

- 'Since when can we afford to organise big parties?' I ask, trying to have a cooling effect.

- 'Since yesterday', my grandfather answers, smiling broadly.

And to say that I wanted to make them shut up, I've failed... Apparently, they haven't wasted their time before taking advantage of the Malfoys.

Suddenly, my grandmother's eyes crease.

- 'Your aunt is still here', she tells my mother. 'She hasn't finished kissing her children, we don't hug Malorie, do we?'

Blecchh! Magda Moon hugging me, yuck ! That would kill me.

I glance at my great-aunt discreetly, she's my grandfather's younger sister.

I mean, half-sister... That's complicated... And I'm sure that's not a surprise for you.

She's indeed hugging her children, she even hugs Potter, before hugging Ginny for the fourth time.

- 'She could have abided by your mother's wish', Magda grumbles to my grandfather. 'And given her daughter a name starting with an M, but no, ever since she first arrived at Hogwarts, Molly's been doing whatever she liked, nobody could reason with her.'

As for me, I love Molly, she's funny, a little stifling, but cool. By cool, I mean that she's not a stickler for attitudes to have and principles... At least, not the Moons' principles.

My grandmother waves politely at Theodore Nott's mother who has come to pick up her son, accompanied by two aurors.

Could the ministry be afraid that something might happen to the son of the Death Eater? Or could they be afraid of the son of the Death Eater?

Pansy and Millicent pass in front of us to reach the muggle side, Pansy ignores me totally, and Millicent waves at me, I smile at her in response.

Not far from them, Blaise is clutching all his suitcases, he gives me a small smile, then he disapparates.

Why can't I be in love with him? He's much better than Draco.

- 'Well', my grandmother says, 'We're going to go now.'

My grandparents and my uncles disapparate suddenly.

- 'How nice of them to have come', I tell my mother cynically.

- 'I think Magda actually wanted to have an excuse to see Molly', Mona says. 'And criticize her one more time.'

- 'That wouldn't surprise me.'

We both move towards the way out, in the mean time, so do the Weasleys, Hermione and Potter.

- 'Hello', Molly says to us.

We answer politely.

- 'Harry Potter', my mother suddenly says.

What's she doing? She's not going to talk to him, is she?

- 'I'm glad to finally meet you', she says.

Please, mom, tell me that you're not one of the-boy-who-lived's fans.

- 'Oh?' Potter says, he doesn't sound very surprised.

- 'Yes', Mona answers. 'I really wanted to know what James' and Lily's son was going to look like.'

- 'Mona was one of the few guests at your parents' wedding', Molly explains Potter.

What?!

- 'Really', Potter answers, surprised, he glances at me furtively.

The mother of a Slytherin student? At his parents' wedding? Merlin, the world must be collapsing around Potter.

- 'Representing the Moon family', my mother adds quickly.

Phew, this was starting to frighten me! I had forgotten the Potters were pure-blood, except for Potter's mother. If his parents weren't dead, I suppose I would have been forced to be nice to him.

- 'How was your year?' Molly asks me.

- 'Good', I answer.

- 'Ginny told me you were going to the HLS', Molly says, giving my mother a discreet look.

Translation : my mother and her aunt send each other letters every week in secret, and my mother most probably told her about my studies. Since the platform is full of witches and wizards whose ears can be very sharp when it comes to peddling gossip, they'd better not seem too close.

- 'Yes', I answer. 'I'm leaving right now by the way.'

- 'Have nice studies then', Molly tells me, smiling.

- 'Have a nice holiday', I tell my former Hogwarts fellow students.

Hermione moves towards me quickly and hugs me.

- 'Thanks', she whispers while I'm still in shock.

- 'For what?' I ask.

- 'For everything', she answers in a low voice. 'For your exciting love problems, for having hilariously destabilized Harry, for pushing Ron into making up his mind, for Winky... And for having been my only true friend, except for Ginny.

- 'You're welcome', I answer. 'You were quite funny too actually...'

Hermione releases me, smiling broadly. Then she clenches her teeth.

She's holding back her tears... Look! Me too! You're becoming a real pisser, Malorie.

Suddenly, Ginny imitates Hermione, she hugs me too.

- 'For Christmas, you get rid of the Moons and turn up at the Burrow to see us', she says.

I'm not going to get rid of them, but I may come on the sly.

- 'OK', I answer, smiling.

She releases me, her eyes seem shining too.

Girls are nothing but pissers.

Suddenly, Ron throws himself into my arms too, he releases me straight away.

- 'Well, shall we go?' He asks, making off to the gate toward the muggle world.

What's just happened?

- 'I won't hug you', Potter says, 'I hope you'll forgive me.'

- 'I'll try to get over it', I say.

The Weasleys, Potter and Hermione catch up with Ron.

Mona and I reach the fence at a less hurried pace.

- 'I've heard something about a funny little story that is supposed to have happened yesterday at Hogwarts', Mona says. 'A story about a statue that felt, and a series of revelations...'

- 'Yeah', I say. 'That really happened.'

- 'You and Draco did that to make your relationship public before leaving, and it degenerated?'

No.

- 'Yes, that wasn't really subtle', I say. 'We did it quite quickly.'

We pass the fence, and land on the muggle side of London. We reach platform number seven. After a few minutes, we find the way to platform 7 ¼. It's almost six in the afternoon, the train is supposed to leave in a few short minutes.

On platform 7 ¼, a blue train, with a big HLS written on it, is waiting.

Before boarding on the train, I turn round to my mother and hold her out my bag containing my old stuff from Hogwarts. She takes a small purse out of her pocket.

- 'Narcissa Malfoy seemed really in a hurry to do business with the Moons', she says. 'Malfoy Junior must have understood it was essential if he wanted to keep you.'

Oh my god! I've sold myself! I've only just fully realized.

- 'After that', Mona says, 'we'll never ask you for anything again. I realize that I forced you to go out with Draco Malfoy.'

- 'It doesn't matter', I say. 'From time to time, you have to sacrifice yourself for your family. And then, he behaved correctly towards me.'

That's how you can assure your mother that you haven't slept with a boy... at least not this boy... well yes... Blaise...

My mother has a little reaction, her face seems more peaceful.

- 'You know', I say. 'I don't care about your asking me to go out with Malfoy. What's bothering me is the fact that you're like the others, you always forced me to keep up appearances. Not showing that we really get on with the Weasleys, not saying that I'm a half-blood, forcing ourselves to have friendly relationships with the other pure-blood families... That, that's bothering me. Because I'm sure that everything would have been simpler, had I been able to talk freely and not to hide my friendships...'

…and my loves.

My mother remains taken aback.

- 'I wanted...', she starts. 'You know... I mean, after you were born... First, I had hidden my having a child from everybody, so that they could not know for sure who your father was. At last I had to tell the family, and they helped me to hide, I don't know what they thought when I didn't tell them who the father was. All this to tell you that appearances were always very important to me, so I raised you with them. And I'm sorry if it hurt you.'

Here I am, I caused an emotional scene with my mother, of course I couldn't have shut up.

Long silent seconds go by.

- 'We'll see each other for Christmas', I say.

- 'It's a pity you don't have holidays, I would have loved to be with you a little while', Mona says, sounding sad.

Me too. But I'd rather die than say it.

I board the train, then start looking for a compartment before realizing that there are no compartments in that train, but only rows of seats. A surly-looking man moves closer to me, two houselves are following him.

- 'Your name?' He asks.

- 'Malorie Moon', I answer.

The man consults a piece of parchment.

- 'Go and take a seat', he says, pointing out the seats lined up behind him. The dormitory compartments won't be opened until all the students have arrived, after dinner.

The two houselves behind him rush at me to take my luggage.

I may become a real SPEW militant, Hermione would be proud of me.

The surly-looking man moves away with the two elves who are carrying my suitcases.

I move forward in the aisle in the middle of the train.

There are about ten students, and forty seats. The students are seated at a little distance from one another. A smooth-brown-haired girl and a boy who seems charmed by her are talking next to a window.

I mean, they're trying to talk, the girl speaks French, and the boy speaks something that sounds like Ikea.

I sit down two rows behind them. Suddenly, the girls turns towards me and says something in French to me.

- 'What?' I say.

- 'French? Espanol? Deutsch? English?'

Is she asking me what languages I speak?

- 'English', I answer. 'Nothing else.'

The girl seems disappointed.

- 'Aziliz', the girl says, pointing at herself.

Bless you.

- 'Malorie Moon', I answer.

She goes back to talking with the boy.

The train starts moving. I look at my mother outside until she disapparates.

And the worst of it is that I'm like her, I want to keep up appearances. After all, if I didn't, I would have asked her where I could find my father a long time ago. If he hadn't been a muggle, I wouldn't have been ashamed, and I would have sought to know him.

The train speeds up, it passes sorts of space walls, as the knight bus does, but in a more violent way. After a quarter of an hour, the train stops, and a new student boards the train which remains stationary for at least a quarter of an hour before starting to move again.

The train does the same thing several time. Around eight in the evening, the train stops in a small station in the middle of nowhere. All around the train, there are pastures for cows, and a village on the horizon.

The man who asked my name enters the carriage, and introduces himself, he's named Isidore. He tells us that we are in Russia, about twenty miles from St Petersburg.

I was dreaming about that! Landing anywhere on the planet... Yet, I'm not happy...

Once Isidore has made his presentation in their languages, the students look euphoric.

Isidore asks us to stand up, and to stay in the aisles between the seats. He pushes a red button near the door behind him, and suddenly, the lined up seats transform into four big tables full of dishes.

After a relatively silent dinner, considering that nobody understands the others, we are lead one by one into tiny individual compartments. I find my luggage waiting for me in my compartment. I put away my things, take a shower, and go to bed.

At half past eleven, I realize that I won't sleep for several very long hours. I get up, slip a cloak on and go out to look at the cows through a window in the corridor, right in front of my compartment, which doesn't have any windows. I contemplate the stars, and the moon. Near the train, the cows have stopped grazing.

I don't risk forgetting Pansy, being surrounded by her fellow creatures.

- 'Do you speak English?'

I turn round abruptly. A brown-haired boy is looking at me.

- 'Yes', I answer.

- 'I heard you saying it to the French girl this evening', he says. 'There's only two of us, I believe.'

He goes and stands next to me and looks at the cows outside.

- 'What's your name?' I ask.

Yes, I'm being polite! You're surprised, aren't you? Well, you're right, I'm desperate here, and I need some social contact.

- 'Tonio Jones', he answers.

- 'Malorie Moon', I answer.

- 'You were at Hogwarts?' Tonio asks.

- 'Yes', I say a little gloomily.

- 'Was it that bad?' He asks, surprised by my reaction.

- 'No', I say. 'Hogwarts is fine, it's me in fact, those last days, those last nine days to be accurate, were kind of exhausting.'

- 'Why the last nine days? It's been nine days since the Dark Lord was destroyed', Tonio says.

Suddenly he stops.

- 'Are you one of his followers?'

- 'No', I cry out. 'The problem... is a guy. But it has nothing to do with you-know-who.'

- 'That's always a guy', Tonio says, smiling. 'Tell me the story.'

- 'We don't know each other, and you want me to tell you the story?'

- 'It's often more easy to talk when you don't know the person', Tonio says.

I look at him, flabbergasted.

- 'In fact', I say. 'I hadn't seen him for a while, and then he came back suddenly, I wasn't prepared. And when he's here, I'm distracted...'

- 'Why distracted?'

Because I love him.

- 'Because... It's complicated', I say. 'Especially those last days, it was worse that the years before.'

- 'He was bullying you?' Tonio asks, sounding worried.

In a certain way.

- 'No', I say. 'We went out with each other.'

- 'You like him then?'

No I don't like him! I'm mad about him.

- 'No', I say. 'I was sort of forced to go out with him.'

Tonio gives me a strange look.

- 'I come from a noble pure-blood family', I explain.

- 'Oh, I see. This must have been hell then.'

I hesitate a few seconds, not knowing what to answer.

- 'No?' Tonio asks, surprised. 'You ended up liking him? Is that the problem?'

- 'No', I say. 'The problem is that I liked him already before.'

But what on earth has got into me, I'm crazy, I don't know this Tonio Jones.

Tonio looks surprised.

- 'I thought you went out with this boy because of your family.'

- 'Yes, and no', I say. 'Let's say that in a way, it suited me to have an excuse.'

Bloody hell, I'm nether at a shrink's nor confessing, I have to shut up.

Tonio stays transfixed.

- 'I'm kind of special', I say, embarrassed.

- 'I don't have trouble believing that', Tonio answers.

Hey! Are you OK? You want to learn learn good manners, old man, if a girl tells you that she finds herself ugly, you tell her that she's wrong, even if she looks like a goat. If I tell you I'm crazy, you tell me I'm not!

Tonio turns round to the window. I take advantage of it to glance at him out of the corner of my eyes.

He's not really awesome, cute, correct, nothing more. But he's got something... I can't say what... Maybe it means I like him... Maybe I could forget Draco with him.

- 'This boy', Tonio says suddenly. 'Did he like you?'

- 'No', I answer. 'We'd been hating each other for a few years. We fight quite often.' .

- 'Why did he want to go out with you? Because of his family too?'

- 'In a way, yes', I answer.

I can't tell him too much here.

- 'Maybe the boy is like you', Tonio says. 'You don't know, maybe he was very glad too to have an excuse to go out with you.'

….Impossible…

- 'Impossible', I say.

- 'Why impossible? Maybe he had the same feelings as you and he'd hidden them just like you', Tonio explains. 'Maybe he didn't understand how to handle his feelings, and then, as soon as he got an excuse to court you, he took advantage of it. Maybe his trial was a godsend for him.'

Trial? Trial? I've never told him about the trial.

- 'I've never told you about the trial', I say.

Tonio looks caught out.

I look at him, searching for an explanation.

He has beautiful blue-gray eyes... Eyes that can be very sweet, and terrifying the next second... Eyes I've already seen...

I release the edge of the window and jump on the boy standing next to me. I start hitting him with difficulty.

- 'You ferret, bastard, asshole!!' I yell. 'Bloody Malfoy!'

- 'Malorie wait', I'm going to explain.

Around us, the doors of some compartments open to see where the racket is coming from.

Draco pushes me back, grabs my wrist, and pulls me in his empty compartment. He closes the door and takes his wand out.

- 'Assurdissium', he casts on the door.

- 'You're really the worst of the cockroaches', I cry out.

Draco pushes me against the door and kisses me violently.

But he doesn't have the right appearance.

I push him back abruptly.

- 'Our agreement is over', I cry out. 'You were supposed to behave correctly with me, and you... you...'

ASSHOLE!

- 'ASSHOLE!' I yell.

- 'Let me explain', Draco begs me. 'The ministry and I were seeking for a safe place for me to stay, then one day, Weasley told you were going to the HLS. I suggested to the aurors that it was a good hiding place. They made arrangements with the HLS committee. I wanted to go to be with you, I had spent a year far from you, and yet I have never thought this much about you. You were obsessing me even worse than when I was at Hogwarts. I'm... It's been like that since our fourth year, since this ball thing, I was wondering who I should invite, and I realized I wanted to go with you... But I couldn't, I don't know why, instead of inviting you, I started teasing you...'

…

I stay still, unable to move.

- 'I shouldn't have let things evolve that way', he says. 'Malorie, I love you.'

Draco moves slightly backwards, waiting for me to react.

- 'Don't worry about our agreement' he says, sounding sorry. 'I'm going to tell my mother not to change anything to the business she's already doing with your grandfather and your uncles.'

Suddenly Draco's hair become blond again. He looks for a bottle in his clothes, and starts unscrewing it.

- 'Wait', I say.

Draco looks at me, amazed. In a few seconds, he has got his appearance back.

- 'You look better like that', I say.

I'm really saying powerful things.

Draco looks at me hopefully.

- 'Malorie', he says in a feeble voice. 'What you've just said... I should have told you who I was... But you've still said it, so... Shall we stop being stupid?'

Yes!

- 'We'll see', I say.

Draco looks at me, waiting for another answer.

- 'Will you make up your mind to kiss me?' I ask suddenly.

Draco, surprised, hastens to obey.

Five seconds from now, we'll be on my bed

Five seconds later, Draco and I are on my bed.

We hear the gong of a faraway church ringing for the first time outside.

And what if he's lying? ...

We hear a second gong.

…No, he can't be...

We hear a third gong.

He's said too much.

Fourth gong.

But maybe…

Fifth gong.

After all, his trial is very important to him.

Sixth gong.

Maybe…

Seventh gong.

Yes?

Eighth gong.

No?

Ninth gong.

Oh, I hate myself.

Tenth gong.

I hold Draco tighter against me.

Eleventh gong.

I've only one thing to say : HAPPINESS!

Twelfth gong.

It's midnight, nine days have passed since Draco's return and the end of the war. And my story with Tonio Jones, alias Draco Malfoy, is beginning...

Fin

Note de l'auteur : Voila c'était le dernier chapitre, j'espère que cette fic vous aura plu. Pour info cette fic fait partie d'une saga (en français) qui s'appelle "Cinq femmes... des Moon". On y retrouve les histoires de plusieurs membres de la famille de Malorie.

par ordre chronologique :

"les temps incertains de Meredith Moon."

"Comment Magda est devenue Madame Moon"

"Le grand amour de Molly moon prewett Weasley".

"Un jour Mona Moon sera une rebelle" (publication de cette dernière ces jours-ci).

Plus une autre fic que je ne commencerais que dans quelques mois ou Malorie sera présente (les 5 Moon en fait).

Voilà c'est tout, merci de laisser une review en francais ou en Anglais. Ca fait plaisir à tous les auteurs.

Note of the author: Veils it was the last chapter, I hope that this fic will have rained you. For information this fic is part of a saga (in French) which is called " Cinq femmes...des Moon ". They find the stories of several members of the family of Malorie.

by order chronological . there:

"les temps incertains de Meredith Moon."

"Comment Magda est devenue Madame Moon"

"Le grand amour de Molly moon prewett Weasley".

"Un jour Mona Moon sera une rebelle" (publication of this last these days).

More another fic than I would begin only in some months or Malorie will be present (5 Moon in fact).

Here is it is everything, thank you for leaving a review in français or in English. This pleases all authors.


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